I have a shower mirror, for the days when I notice the stubble on my cheeks as I run my hands across my wet face. It’s a strange thing for me. I have not really enjoyed mirrors because they have a tendency to show me as I believe others see me instead of who I am.

This particular mirror was advertised as fog free, which is true when I’m not using it. It’s got water stains on it, a battle I gave up some time ago since the water I get is stored in an unsealed concrete tank with the lime leaching into the water on the hot days in Trinidad – and lately they have all been hot days.

I used to spray the shower with a weak vinegar solution daily to combat the buildup from the hard water, and give the mirror a quick wipe, a constant battle against something I could not win against for a prize I don’t care much about – a clear view of myself.

On days when I shave, I simply rub a soapy hand across the mirror. It appears more clear because of a scientific explanation I won’t bore you with, and I can look if I choose to. Mainly I don’t even use it to shave, instead simply going by feel. Yet it is there.

There are 4 mirrors in my home. One in each bathroom out of some reflex, the one in the shower, and the dressing mirror so that should I care how I look, it’s there. Generally, the dressing mirror has a towel over it since the air conditioner blows right on it, something that did not happen by conscious design.

It wasn’t always this way. There was a time when I thought mirrors were much more important. There was a time when I worried more about how I was perceived. There was a time when the reflection was less branded by time.

I bring this up because of the last post where I touched on the tip of the iceberg.

How we see ourselves, who we see ourselves as, and even who we assume we are seen as is how we’re defined by others, not ourselves.

This is an important thing to understand for some other posts that are coming (and will link below).