Just looking in the mirror will make you a brave human

I like to use the mirror analogy to explain my thoughts sometimes, and this post will be about that. The mental mirror. Many people hide behind the mirror, where they aren’t able to see their reflection, they can’t see their own flaws and shortcomings, and they live in a state of ignorance or a lack of self-awareness. This is also about escapism. People hide behind the mirror by running from their thoughts, whether that be through drugs, material, or other people. Some people are so hungry for money, that they will do anything to obtain money, and chose to live behind the mirror, where they can’t see the terrible person they have become. Most people behind the mirror aren’t bad people, they’re just scared of facing up to their own reality, facing who they really are when they are by themselves with no escape mechanism. This is because it’s difficult to admit to your own flaws, and looking into the mirror can bring about inferior emotions, such as guilt, sadness, self-hatred, fear, anger, frustration, etc.
Yes you can look in the mirror and try and reflect, but a lot of the times that mirror is dirty, it’s not clean. Someone’s been hiding behind it in a state of ignorance, whether that be through a life of crime, escapism or intoxication, etc. And it’s gotten dirty and dusty. So you can’t see a clear reflection of yourself, so you might say, “it’s not that bad, I’m doing fine.” But you have to work to clean that mirror before you look into it. Otherwise people will just go back into hiding behind the mirror, because they want to believe everything is fine, they aren’t committed, and this is because they are afraid of facing inferior emotions. Because they are still stuck in that state of ignorance.

Sometimes someone has to clean that mirror for them, because they are still hesitant or maybe stubborn to do it themselves. That’s where the support of others comes in, your trusted ones and your loved ones, to take your hand and help clean that mirror before you can actually see a clear reflection of who you are and what your flaws are. They aren’t committed to bettering themselves, or they’ve gotten really comfortable behind that mirror. Then when that mirror has been cleaned and they look at the real them, that’s when emotions they didn’t want to feel come in. Inferior emotions, emotions of guilt, shame, distress, self hatred, this leads to a state of depression often times, and people can’t take it, so they go back behind the mirror, where they’re safe from these emotions. They’re scared of facing these emotions, so they stay want to stay in a state where they lack self awareness.

But someone who is prepared to look into a clean mirror, and look at their flaws, their shortcomings, and work on them, work on scars, work on their mentality and personality. Then one day they will be able to look into that mirror and say, “I’m my own hero, I saved myself and now I can use these skills to help others.” At the end of the day, you can’t get yourself out of the hole of inferior emotions and depression by relying on others, no matter how bad those emotions are, you have to somehow push through, and it’s great when people do help you with it, but it’s still up to you, and you only. And doing that takes real commitment. And salute to anyone who has done that or is making an effort.

Then one day when adversity again strikes that person that’s made that commitment to themselves, they wonder who’s going to save them, who’s going to be my hero. Then they look in the mirror and remember “I’m my own hero” and remember that they’ve done this before, they’ve subconsciously studied for the next test, and they see a hero. You are your own hero once you work on yourself and admit to your flaws and shortcomings. And make the changes in you.

Unfortunately, most people aren’t ready for that full commitment, they don’t want to see their flaws and feel inferior emotions, because those emotions can be painful, so they stay in a state where they lack self-awareness. Then some people have been told or taught to always hide behind the mirror, and we really can’t blame them, because what a person is taught as a child sticks with them, and it’s hard to break out of it, but not impossible, other people are always around to help, it’s just about finding the right person to help you and that person can be your guide.

It’s scary looking into the mirror, and the process of self-improvement is difficult. Life is like a traffic jam, there will be stoppages, some rage, frustration, and there will be moments where progress stops, but it’s important to never go behind that mirror again because getting out of that state again is even more difficult, you become comfortable behind the mirror, so if things are not going right, it’s alright it will pass, “Make room for mistakes and Depression.” The end result after all the effort and struggle is amazing and nothing can beat that satisfaction that you, an individual, have faced your true self, your reality, and went through all the struggle to get where you are. There’s beauty in the struggle. Just looking in the mirror will make you a brave human.

I love this following poem from Kendrick Lamar, it’s a beautiful analogy for life. Yes, he made it from his perspective of his life in Compton, and how he grew from there. But if you just change up a couple of words, it can fit your life perfectly too

“The caterpillar is a prisoner to the streets that conceived it
Its only job is to eat or consume everything
Around it, in order to protect itself from this mad city
While consuming its environment the
Caterpillar begins to notice ways to survive
One thing it noticed is how much the
World shuns him, but praises the butterfly
The butterfly represents the talent,
The thoughtfulness, and the beauty within the caterpillar
But having a harsh outlook on life the caterpillar sees the
Butterfly as weak and figures out
A way to pimp it to his own benefits
Already surrounded by this mad city the caterpillar
Goes to work on the cocoon which institutionalizes him
He can no longer see past his own thoughts
He’s trapped
When trapped inside these walls certain ideas take roots,
Such as going home, and bringing back new concepts to this mad city
The result?
Wings begin to emerge, breaking the cycle of feeling stagnant
Finally free, the butterfly sheds light on situations that
The caterpillar never considered, ending the internal struggle
Although the butterfly and caterpillar are
Completely different, they are one and the same.” – Kendrick Lamar

“I can feel the changes
I can feel a new life
I always knew life can be dangerous
I can say that I like a challenge and you tell me it’s painless
You don’t know what pain is
How can I paint this picture
When the color blind is hanging with ya?” – Kendrick Lamar

*This post was somewhat inspired by Kendrick Lamar, and I added a lot of my own thoughts to it