The Serenity Of Connection
What do you see when you look in the mirror? Do you like what you see? Do you even see yourself clearly? That opinionated voice, is it your own you hear, or is it another’s voice that has been occupying your ears? I’m asking this out of curiosity, because I often ask myself the same thing. Are you your own worst critic? Is it your fault, or are others to blame? Do you hear your mom saying, “you’ve got your Grandma’s small eyes,” or maybe you hear the “too good to be true” compliments from the insincere bar guys?
If I had to guess, for those who are reading this, it’s others you hear saying, “you would be beautiful if…” You see, I know it seems odd to say, but who has the authority in defining beauty anyway! As if it is up to them to decide whether you are or are not, just by simply thinking a thought. Society has been attempting to decondition the same conditions they have imposed on us all, through ad campaigns of self-love and acceptance, regardless of being too skinny or fat, too short or freakishly tall. I will commend the efforts, and give gratitude to their try, but I’m afraid it seems to be too little too late, at least for this lifetime. So, let’s be realistic, and assume these conditions persist and remain. What can we do for ourselves to be able to look in the mirror everyday without having feelings of shame?
Not too long ago, I would ignore a question like that. It was too difficult to digest, and I didn’t feel pondering it would produce much personal progress. However, recently I had an extremely bizarre moment, one that was truly profound. With just one look in the mirror, the answer to that question was magically unwound. As I stood face to face with who was normally me, the mirror reflected back the most incredible scene. There was a young girl who appeared, she morphed into me, and then I shape-shifted into a wrinkled and worn much older lady. Right before my eyes, my face continued to change into a million different faces. It was illogical and very strange.
When I stepped back with confusion, my thoughts ranged from, “ Am I going crazy? Was I dreaming?” to “I must be deranged!” Still, to this day, I’m not exactly sure how that implausible moment occurred. Regardless of the method, I feel I now have that imminent question answered. When looking in the mirror, I expected to see myself, as typically it’s only my own reflection of myself that I see. Perhaps what I thought was my own self-perspective, was not actually coming from me. It was only a vision, fabricated from collected opinions and other’s own self scrutiny.
After trying to understand what it was that I saw, I was left feeling dumbfounded, but also amazed and in awe. The thing that I learned from this mirror on the wall might just be the most important lesson of life: a lesson for all. A lesson of perspective in understanding the collective. It was clear now that we are all connected. We are united together, and we are all reflective.
When I looked in the mirror, I saw everyone within me. Embedded in my face was all of humanity. This enlightening moment was deeply felt, and it showed me that everyone I’d ever encountered was just a reflection of myself. What I thought about them, whether positive or negative, was based on my own experience with them, therefore, my opinion was relative. The view I have of others it’s not about them; it’s about the things I’ve conditioned myself to echoing my own criticisms. So, if I look at someone else and don’t like what I see, they are uncovering an aspect of myself, something I disapprove of or dislike about me. That being said, the opposite is also true. When I see something I like about someone, it means I see and feel that goodness exists in me too.
Now, back to the question I proposed at the beginning of this oration: How do we look in the mirror without feeling shame in our self-examination? Well, the answer is that we must take off our masks and drop all learned conditions. We can train our brains to release the delusional judgements that we were erroneously led to believe. We are able to adjust the manner in which we view ourselves, see others, regarding everything.
The comprehension of that previous notion activates the clear recognition of our intrinsic power within. The strength we gain with this self-awareness frees our innate knowing and capacity to behold all that is. This discernment ignites our once lost inherent capabilities to discard all the deceptions that exist in our misguided realities. As this truth is unraveled, culmination exists. When we distinguish ourselves from illusion, we allow for a new presence to begin. Only through conscious surrender, can we rise above semblance in order to receive the fundamental energy that is essential to our transcendence.
So, try this for a change: To make things feel better, when you look in the mirror, or even at another person, acknowledge the features you admire or adore, and the qualities you feel grateful for. Through shifting our perspective from picking apart the things we’ve deemed “bad”, we have the ability to alter our viewpoint, and see only good things and appreciate them instead. I feel, without a doubt, if we all come together and are able to do this, humanity can evolve from feeling unworthy and living in constant unrest. Rather, we can appreciate ourselves and others, allowing us to move away from conflict, stepping back into our natural state of eternal bliss.
Just imagine, applying this idea not only to the physical things that we see, but to our entire experience. All things, think everything! I believe this idea is perhaps the secret, maybe the solution, to allow ourselves to experience the joy in unconditional love and devotion. When making this shift in ourselves, we help the collective achieve a raise in consciousness, so the bigger picture can be seen. Before we know it, we will be co-creating goodness and much needed healing, and perhaps eventually we can reach that desperately wanted euphoric feeling.
In the end, after all, it’s the same thing that we all desire. We just want that feeling of being alive, something that sets our souls on fire. It is then when we can begin to conceive a collective masterpiece painted with essences of things like acceptance, love, and tranquility. The beautiful design will embody the truth that connects us all. I feel it being authentic, exquisite, and free from flaws. It will be the greatest ever, ONE of absolute perfection!
This piece I will call, “The Serenity of Connection: The Truth Found in Reflection”
