There have been many times in my life I’ve looked in the mirror and couldn’t recognize the person in front of me.
Unrecognizable.
A stranger.
A consequence and character developed by life’s harsh realities and debilitating pain.
Standing in front of the mirror knowing I was the one reflecting upon the shiny surface. But I no longer knew that person and that version of myself. How can you not know yourself? How can you not recognize your own being? How do you get so far attached that you stare into the eyes of a stranger while glancing into a mirror?
You get there by losing yourself. By creating a new person from the pain and destruction. You aren’t recognizable in a mirror. Not because you are lost, not because you are gone, but because you are recreated. You are both old and new, a delicate mixture and transformation.
This new reflection is the success and accomplishment of growth, resilience, and hopeful overcoming. You don’t know yourself because you haven’t reintroduced yourself yet.
Wait are you waiting for? Take a good look. A long, intentional, and purposeful look. You’re breathtaking. Not just in outer beauty but because of the way you took pain and used it to craft a soul that shines. You’ve designed a new version of yourself with the mess, the mess you turned into glorious redemption.
You are stunning. You are captivating. You hold a story and path that has changed you in ways that sparkle. In ways that have strangers mesmerized by your pull, your warmth, and your spirit. You have an aura that says, “I’ve been broken. I’ve been shattered. I’ve been hurt in ways too complicated to explain but I am here. Standing. Strong and brave. Raw and vulnerable. Ready for the next chapter of my story to be written. Ready for you to see me. Ready to see myself.”
The world sees the new you. Do you see her too? Are you inspired by her, like the silent strangers that pass? Are you encouraged by her comeback? Are you in awe of her ability to smile again after her world was forever changed? You should be!
Take a look in that mirror and smile.
Look at the woman who’s stood in the storm and created a rainbow. Look at the woman who was left with only a messy canvas splattered with heartbreak, chaos, and confusion and turned it onto a masterpiece developed by bold and endless love.
Look at her! Look closely. It’s you. And you’re breathtaking, friend! Absolute imperfect perfection!
