Nishmitha Rodrigo, Week 3, The Mirrors

If I could have one object represent me, it would be my mirrors. It is the one thing I inevitably use every single day, regardless of if I want to or not. The first thing I see when I wake up in the morning is myself through the mirror that is right in front of my bed. When I get out of my bed from the right side, I see myself yet again through my vanity mirror but this time the only difference is the angle I see myself in. Then again through the mirror in my bathroom and so on throughout the day, whether I want to keep seeing myself over and over again or not. I don’t have an option rather than just look and chow down on the fact that this is who I am and this is what I look like. 

The mirrors show me my true image. Given that, It still confuses me and causes consternation because sometimes I feel like I see myself differently everytime I look at myself in the mirror, but of course the way I perceive myself also depends on my mood and well being in the moment. Regardless of how umbraging it is to feel as such, I know for a fact that it doesn’t lie to me. It shows me who I am as I am at the moment. It does not hide my age, my acne, nor my insecurities. It shows me the most realistic version of myself because a mirror never indulges flattery or criticism of any kind. Therefore,  how I perceive myself is up to me. It can either make me feel rapturous or indifferent, depending on whether I choose to love or hate the person I see in the mirror. Discerning a mirror as something that can represent me enables me to connect more deeply with my discourse communities because self-image is something that a lot of us struggle with due to internal or external factors.