Beyond the Mirror
Mirror, mirror on the wall, release me from your shackles
I used to let my story be written by comparisons, judgments, and the expectations of others. But I learned how to rewrite it. In this new story, I chose to be the protagonist—not a side character. And the first chapter began with simple self-acceptance: no apologies, no waiting for someone else’s pen to define my worth
And suddenly, you're back in 2021. Sitting in the dark spot behind the house, crying your eyes out. She just looked in the mirror, and the image staring back at you broke your heart.
The ugly girl in the baggy pinafore: the one no one would ever glance at. You ran out of the toilet to your safe spot, muffling your voice and screaming into the void. Your eyes rained, your voice cracked, and then you heard it: "Ikrammmm!!!!" Your mom was calling. Quickly, you wiped the tears away, rinsed your face, and dried it.
The effort to hide your teary eyes seemed not to have worked. "Why are your eyes red? Were you crying?" she asked.
"No, I wasn’t crying," you stammered. "I don’t know why my eyes are red." She nodded skeptically but let the matter go, sparing you from further stress.
As you walked back inside, your thoughts didn’t stay behind with the tears. They followed you everywhere, at school, at home, even among your friends.
It wasn’t just the mirror that made you feel small; it was how the world seemed to agree with it. Around your friends, the compliments for them flowed effortlessly: “You’re so pretty!” “Your smile is perfect!” Laughter and lightness filled the air, but somehow, you felt like a shadow in their glow.
No one ever said those things to you. And so, you stayed quiet, smiling on the outside but shrinking a little more on the inside each time. You started to wonder if being invisible was just who you were meant to be.
And no, you’re not jealous of them, you just wish to be beautiful too.
For a long time, I stayed stuck in that place of invisibility, comparing myself to everyone around me. I stopped looking in mirrors altogether. What was the point?
But one day, something inside me whispered, Enough.
It didn’t happen all at once. There wasn’t a grand moment of clarity or an inspiring pep talk that changed everything. It was just me, tired of feeling this way. Tired of believing that I was less because the world didn’t see me.
So, I started small. The next time I caught my reflection in a mirror, I didn’t turn away. I forced myself to look. It was awkward and uncomfortable. My mind immediately wanted to focus on everything I thought was wrong: my nose, my skin, my smile.
But then I tried something new. I looked for one thing I liked. Just one.
At first, it felt silly. But with time, it got easier. My eyes are nice. I like the way my hair looks today. I don’t look as bad as I thought.
I started noticing how unfair I was being to myself. I’d never say the things I thought about myself to anyone else, so why was I saying them to me?
Little by little, I stopped avoiding mirrors. I stopped shrinking in the presence of others. I began to appreciate the person staring back at me, not for being perfect, but for being me. Perfect is overrated anyway.
Who knew confidence was makeup itself? Being happy and confident with my looks reflected in every part of my life. I glowed better, smiled more, and felt so much lighter. I didn’t care anymore—I just didn’t care.
The compliments that used to feel like they were reserved for everyone else? They didn’t matter anymore. But here’s the funny thing: once I stopped seeking them, they came pouring in. Friends who had never complimented me before started noticing things, “You look great today!” “Your smile is so pretty!”. And even strangers, people I had never met (Well, isn't that the meaning of a stranger? Forgive me dearest gentle reader ), began offering kind words.
It wasn’t about the compliments, though. They didn’t define me anymore. I knew my worth now, with or without them. What mattered was how I felt about myself. I wasn’t looking for validation from others. Instead, I found it in how I carried myself and started to like, I mean love, the person I saw in the mirror.
It was like a ripple effect. As I accepted myself, other things started to fall into place. I wore clothes I actually liked instead of hiding in oversized ones. I walked into rooms without worrying about what people thought. I found joy in the little things, like catching my reflection and smiling at it instead of avoiding it.
I used to think light came from how others saw me, but I learned that I was glowing all along. It was never about a spotlight or being noticed; it was about realizing that the glow inside me, however faint at first, had always been enough to light my way
The world didn’t change, but I did. And that made all the difference.
Maybe you’ve been there too. Maybe you’ve felt like the shadow in someone else’s light, wondering why the mirror never seems kind to you. You’ve tried to laugh it off, ignore it, push it aside—but the weight lingers, doesn’t it?
Let me tell you this: you’re not alone, and you’re not invisible. I know how easy it is to let the world’s standards define you, to feel small in a room where others seem to shine effortlessly. But here’s the truth I wish someone had told me back then: your worth isn’t tied to anyone else’s glow.
You don’t have to wait for the world to see you. See yourself. Start small—find that one thing you like. Celebrate it. Then find another. And another. Slowly, you’ll start seeing the beauty in the person staring back at you.
The world might not change overnight. It might not shower you with compliments or suddenly acknowledge your light. But when you change how you see yourself, the world starts reflecting it back in unexpected ways.
So, this is for you—the one who might feel invisible, who might feel like they don’t belong, who’s tired of shrinking to fit into spaces that were never designed to hold their greatness. Stop waiting for permission to exist fully and boldly. You are already enough.
And when you look in the mirror, let it be a moment of connection, not judgment. See the person you are and the one you’re becoming. Because they’re worth seeing and because you are worth everything.
So, take a moment right now. Look at yourself in the mirror and find one thing you love about your reflection. It could be your smile, your hair, or even the sparkle in your eyes. And let that be enough to remind you—you are worthy. You are beautiful. You are you.