What
does one think when they see a shattered mirror; is it broken? Or is it
fragmented, displaying multiple reflections of the person looking into it?
An
unbroken mirror reflects a singular reflection; complete, composite and whole
as a unit. It reflects the present location where the person is. So the mirror
is considered functional for use and is retained.
The
canvas of each life is quite similar, we begin unexposed since we are still to
unlearn what nature taught us and learn what the world teaches us, so our
canvas is blank. It’s reflects holistic emptiness.
Through
the years the canvas gets painted bit by bit with many sections contributing to
filling it up as a single unit; a composite holistic reflection. Despite each section
having a story of its own, these stories are lost by the grandeur of the complete
work of art. The voice of each section is hushed up by the brilliance of the
end product in the present moment.
The limitless
experiences are what contributes to our individual canvases, the unique
sections which get missed if we perceive life in totality or define it by one
section; age, gender, martial status, social strata, achievements, failures, etc.
Seeing
life as a unit, we often applaud ourselves for merits earned or criticize
ourselves for failure. This is but a synopsis; being fit - looking fab,
achievements accumulated professionally or children produced in the cycle, shelved
projects, failures but what we don’t notice is the challenges faced, tears
shed, price paid, compromises made and the devastating storms one might have faced
to get to the point where they stand today. The holistic picture makes us skip
the finer details of these many beautiful sections of the canvas, despite them
staring at us.
At the
face of looking at someone, it is impossible to tell the wear and tear, the suppressed
sadness or restlessness, the phobias and traumas that are being carried with
them each day, the loneliness they dread which waits daily for them like a
dutiful spouse, the longing and arousal that text them hourly, the desperation and shame of wrong decisions which they duck each morning but yet
it looks over their shoulder with each firm handshake with which they meet life.
The violation of innocence, the scars of loss, the tattered idea of love and
its tiresome quest, the fatigue of trying daily yet being stuck in same patterns
or indifference which like a cold winter refuses to allow the return of spring.
We
also miss the giggles of hope that spill over in each smile, the tip toed jumps
of luck and chance, the tug a war of infatuations, the heat and coolness of
ambition, the breath of spiritual calling, the comfort of dependability from
unnamed relationships, the guidance of the universe that keeps one ticking, the
mentorship of repair that comes itself from damage, the management of time
which is taught by all things and people who have chosen to leave.
There
are so many fragments in each person making it impossible to know, see and acknowledge
their presence by seeing a composite unit; the holistic canvas.
“Mirror,
Mirror on the wall, wonder what you see at all”
The shattered
mirror is the mother of fragments; she holds the different pieces, in their
space. The fragments hold their fort with dignity for each experience, irrelevant
of good or bad, have led to making us who we are today. Each experience
is unique and wholly responsible for the mark it has left. Without those
experiences the canvas would not be complete.
So
despite what the world considers functional and non functional, it is in the
non-functional shattered mirror that the true self of the laboring artist
is seen. With each fragment the holistic picture of our soul comes
together.
When we smile at those broken bits, it seems as though each memory and moment is smiling right
back at us in gratitude. It is in that moment that we feel blessed for each of them and despite their time passing by, they hold us together as a composite unit. We can visit them anytime for strength, learning, joy as we take our journey onwards.
The sky at night has millions of spots of light that make the black blanket a
work of art, so are our fragments that make us a work of art.
We
began life with a blank canvas, since the purpose was for us unlearn nature,
learn life and then unlearn life. The intention is not to look at the mirror as
non-functional, to be replaced. But to know that these countless experiences cannot be credited to
any one person but belongs to all. If a catastrophe did not visit then one
would never know the capacity of our strength, which is needed to counter the effects
of that catastrophe. Fragments color our world or else
we would continue to be a blank canvas and there would be no reflection staring back at us.
Find time to appreciate your canvas for when you enjoy the
masterpiece that you are, you will be a curator capable of seeing the work of art in all.
Mirror, mirror on the wall; life is our canvas and how
to live it, is our call.
