Making Friends With The Man In The Glass

I've noticed lately that we focus a great deal on how we treat others. Whether it's our religious beliefs or karma or whatever it seems like many of us get the fact that we should try to treat others with kindness. So why is it that we are taught to treat others kindly but we rarely talk about how we talk and think about ourselves?

I have never really liked mirrors. I feel like I've made peace with many of my quirks but for so e reason I avoid mirrors unless I need them for something specific. A friend challenged me to post a video for a class I'm taking and they show the little picture in the bottom corner of you and I realized I'm a little insecure of my physical appearance. It's not something that really bothers me so I just don't spend much time fixing myself up in the morning...and I tend to avoid mirrors.

Audra Clegg shared the following poem during a Sunday school lesson and it really struck me:

The Man In The Glass by Anonymous

When you get what you want in your struggle for self
and the world makes you king for a day
Just go to the mirror and look at yourself
and see what that man has to say

For it isn't your father or mother or wife
who judgment upon you must pass
The fellow whose verdict counts the most in your life
is the one staring back from the glass

Some people may think you a straight-shooting chum
and call you a wonderful guy
But the guy in the glass says you're only a bum
if you can't look him straight in the eye

He's the fellow to please never mind all the rest
for he's with you clear up to the end
And you've passed your most dangerous difficult test
if the man in the glass is your friend

You may fool the whole world down the pathway
of life and get pats on the back as pass
But your final reward will be heartaches and
tears if you've cheated the man in the glass.

If we want to make the man (or woman) in the glass our friend it is important to change the way we judge our self. A college roommate (so sad I can't remember which one) gave me the following guideline to follow: When you think or say something about yourself think, would I say that about someone else...to their face? If it is something hurtful we probably wouldn't say it and we should give our self the same courtesy as we want to be friends with the man in the glass.

Please, please, please just try it. You are worth this experiment. Your value is determined not by how others see you but by how you see yourself. Please come back here and share how it went. I'd love to know how this affects you as it really changed the way I think about myself. I'm going to work on feeling more comfortable with the mirror by smiling at myself I am excited to see how it goes.