The Day I Finally Looked in the Mirror and Saw a Future

We’re sitting in the hospital lounge room, that all too familiar room with those yellow walls that feel like they’re closing in on me, the blue oversized curtains letting in a glimpse of the outside world.

We had to sit there for 30 minutes after our meal, a routine that I was familiar with. I was stuck there, stuck listening to the discussions of the other girls in the room.

Some of the girls were discussing what they saw when they looked in the mirror.

My face is looking fat, my stomach is bulging, I look terrible.

I was listening to the conversation and something arose up within me.

I said to them, “When I look in the mirror, I see a future.”

Wow!

When I look in the mirror I see a future.

They looked at me and nodded their heads.

Writing this now I realized that every time I looked in the mirror, I saw a fault, something about me that I didn’t like, something that I felt disgusted about. I just didn’t like looking in the mirror. I also didn’t see that I was in the grip of an eating disorder.

I have changed my thoughts about what I see when I look in the mirror. I see someone with a future someone who wants to make a difference. Someone who wants to leave a legacy.

Look in the mirror and see your future.

Look in the mirror and see your potential.