Tuesday, September 11, 2007

Mirror, Mirror on the Wall (Frannie)

My day starts with me and the mirror.
I keep telling myself not to do it, but every morning, it's the same old routine. I have to undress completely and see myself. As if I might have somehow gained a lot of weight overnight.

I don't see myself the way other people do. I'm pretty sure about that.

One day, I was walking on a crowded street in Lexington, not thinking about anything other than the bus I had to catch. (I was on my way to meet my mother, who wanted me to shop with her. She gets nasty if I'm late.)

As I was hurrying along, I happened to glance up and I saw this very slim and beautiful young woman. It took me a second to realize that I was approaching a mirrored panel outside this store, and that the woman I'd seen was actually me! In that same split second, the image ahead of me changed, and that slim, attractive woman was gone. Instead, I saw me. I wasn't that slim. And I certainly wasn't that attractive.

I continued on, thinking about what had happened. Had I really seen a glimpse of myself the way other people saw me? In that unguarded moment? Maybe my mind was just playing tricks on me.

Mirror, mirror, are you telling me the truth?

No comments: