A Letter to My Reflection

Dear Mirror,

Fuck you and everything you believe in. All this confidence, all this ambition, all this momentum, all for nothing. How can I believe in you when no one believes in me? Truth, faith, and commitment are nothing but the diluted components of pseudo-security. Careful now, reflection. Remember, you're just an image. Everyone sees you; everyone loves you: the success story, the glamor, the pretty shell that covers the chaos. That's all you are--a costume, a mask, a glorified facade. But you have no substance. You are a worthless dream. I am the reality here--me and all my flaws. And when I'm judged, labeled, or frowned upon, you always disappear. When the truth approaches, you flee. You leave me to my scars like a wound without a bandage.

No one cares to look at you when the negatives come out. No one sees accomplishments anymore; all they see is failure. People never want the whole picture. They want the best or the worst. The pinnacle and the pit will always invoke the most attention, separately. Very few accept the entire story. Most just want the interesting chapters, the peaks and valleys of the roller coaster. But I can't live to please everyone anymore. I can't embrace a fabricated life. Your reign has been overthrown by truth my old friend. I used to see myself in you, but now there's only lies. You've led me down a path of falsity and pain. So, I bleed these words and cry these lines with no remorse for you. Oh mighty reflection, your power has run its course. Playing make-believe was fun. The popularity was exciting. The attention you received was amazing. I could have never done that alone. But it doesn't relent the fact that you are fake. You no longer have a place in my world. And if people like me less when you're gone, so be it.

From this point on, I will never call to you for support, search for your confident face, or attempt to catch a glimpse of what might have been. I used to split myself in two for you. But now, when I look into the mirror, I will see myself--my scars along with my successes, my pain along with my pride. I am a better person whole than divided. This world tramples the weak, and I am so much stronger without you. Never show your ugly face again. You no longer exist.

Sean Williams