When most of us look into the mirror, don’t like what we see. We realize that we have too many imperfections. Our nose is slightly crooked, and our face will never grace the cover of Time Magazine's most beautiful people.
We are a work in progress and we worry that we can’t live up to society’s expectation of us, so we dash out to Walmart to look for a special conditioning shampoo for our thinning hair and a face cream for our aging, wrinkled, drooping skin. Then, almost overnight, grey hair causes us to bring out a bottle of color-back hair color, which enables us to feel good about our refreshed, rejuvenated appearance because we suddenly look 10 years younger. Sadly, our family and friends’ positive opinion of us matter more than the opinion of ourselves, so we continue these rituals just to please them.
We buy clothes that we don’t like and are not our style because we are told certain clothes and shoes of a brand name bring out the best in us and make us trendy, fashionable, handsome, and self-assured. The advertising media has more power on our fashion choices than we ever realized. It causes us to buy things we don’t want or need, so we are driven to make a positive impression on our peers and the public in general. We want to look better, healthier, younger, and ageless because we feel so incomplete and worthless in just being who we really are inside. We have become a prisoner of society’s opinion, rules, and regulations regarding our worth as a human being. It truly is a no-win situation because there is always another mountain to scale or another goal to reach before our reflection in the mirror will please us. We are our worst critic, and our lives reflect it. We are not happy or comfortable in our own skin.
Life is a special gift. Our true worth comes from a warm heart, not a cold mind. Contrary to popular belief, each one of us are unique and special in God’s eyes.
No two snowflakes are alike, and no two people are alike. God doesn’t do reproductions, so don’t follow the crowd for you will surely step on things that smell and are unfamiliar. Always remember to take special pride in who you are. Popularity is overrated; believe in yourself!
Where you are a doctor, a lawyer, plumber, school teacher, policeman, or homeless on the street matters not. Whatever your lot or vocation in life doesn’t define you. We all have a special gift and function in life, and it is necessary.
A wise man said that life has roses and thorns intermingled. Don’t try to force life into a corner. Let it have its way. It is like a raging river, forever changing and moving along. Be like that swift current—don’t look backward or forward for it is clear sailing straight ahead.
