People, like the moon, only show the world a small piece of themselves at a time. You may discover that even the closest of friends or family members reveal parts of themselves that you had never seen before – a peculiar talent or an unknown hobby. Strangely enough, even we are not fully aware of who we are and the things that we are truly capable of doing.
When we were born, we were empty and pure, ready to absorb what the world had to offer. As we grew, we slowly transformed into a mirror, and we became a reflection of the people we have been around and the situations we have been through. The idea of self is one that is wrapped in layers of emotions and carefully constructed with pieces of personality. The transition from childhood into adulthood is so frightening and confusing because you are dismantling yourself and rearranging it into something that is authentic – something that is not a reflection or a copy. We finally gain the ability to shape our own personality. We gain the chance to make our own mistakes without someone being there to stop us before we do, and we have the chance to do the right thing without someone showing us how to do it first.
Recently, I discovered an item called a “True mirror” or a “Non-reversing mirror”. The specialty of this mirror is that the reflection in the mirror will show you just as another person sees you. Usually, in a normal mirror, images are flipped; the left side of an image appears on the right. However, in a True mirror, the reflection is not flipped, but instead is an accurate display of what you look like in real life. Although this may not seem like a great discovery, one may notice that a reflection of his or herself that is not flipped as usual takes on a disorienting uncanniness. Asymmetry suddenly becomes more obvious, flaws and other things that you had never seemed to notice before becomes quite visible. Rarely does someone find the process of viewing their reflection in a “True mirror” a positive experience.
Why do persons find their true reflection unpleasant? Why do these extremely minor changes that you observe become so irritating all of a sudden? Although one may believe that this may relate to factors such as poor self- confidence or obsession with the way one looks, the answers lie in a much more simple fact. Persons do not like to find that something as personal as the way they look has never been the way that they have perceived throughout the entirety of their life. Persons do not like to realise that the man in the mirror was never ever real.
A big part of making the right choices as you grow up is getting to know yourself and what is best for you. Introspection is one way to get to know yourself, but as proved by the True mirror, no matter how well acquainted you are with yourself, your true self may be quite different from what you know. It is never easy to have an accurate self-image, especially at a young age, But if you do not know who you are, how can you know what is best for you?
A True mirror does not only show you the real image of yourself, but it shows you the way others perceive you. A good amount of growth comes from taking constructive criticism and asking help from the adults around you as well as the people you trust. Sometimes, it is important to remember that growing up is not something you have to do alone. We are surrounded by people who see our true image every day and love all of the flaws that we do not even know exist. Perhaps, part of growing up is also uncovering and beginning to cherish this fact.
Renika Anand is currently a student at Marian Academy.
