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| Thursday, August 12, 2004 |
| Mirror Universe |
Mirror, mirror, hanging on the wall,
Who is the fairest of them all?
Did you ever wonder why the mirror has such a powerful effect on people? Take for example Violet, she stares at her reflection for hours on waves of vanity, constantly checking if her face is still as perfect as it had been thirty minutes before. Then there's Michelle who takes a glimpse and nods her head in her happy-go-lucky mood. She smiles at herself and whisks off to school. And finally there's Jane, she is one of those who fear the mirror and would turn her face away every time she sees her reflection. But all three are beautiful by the world's standards. Is it not then only a matter of external features that the mirror has the ability to reflect?
Like in Snow White, the Evil Queen's magic mirror chose Snow White as fairer than she. How could this be? If beauty were subject to relativity then both the Queen and Snow White need not compete for they were both raving beauties. And if Violet, Michelle and Jane were truly beautiful externally, why do they not stare at their reflection for the same period of time? What then is the standard of beauty? Who then sets this standard? How do these mirrors work?
Violet, a question of vanity, she takes pride in her appearance and spends endless hours enhancing her assets, applying blush, lipstick and all sorts of cosmetics. What does she see in her magic mirror? I don't like the color of my lips, I should change it, she thinks. My eyes are too made up, I should go for the natural look, where is that tissue? God, is that a zit! Oh dear, I better cover it up before anyone notices. They might think I'm ugly. Will Hannah approve of this look? Will Steven be pleased if I wear pink? How about this skirt? "Nah!" She walks to her closet and pulls out another outfit...
Michelle, happy-go-lucky, she's comfortable in her own skin and takes care of her appearance only to please herself. She thinks, Hair, check. Teeth? Check. Any dirt? No. Good. Are my clothes wrinkled? Just a little, I'm fine. Ok, got to go. And so she waltzes out of the house and waits for the school bus to come pick her up. It's a good day today; I've got it all figured out.
And Jane lies unhappily in her bed. She watches the mirror reflect the window on the other side of the room and the little bird’s nest on a branch outside. I don't want to get up. I'm so lazy. I have no purpose whatsoever. I don't know what to do. I feel so useless! I hate myself. Look at that beautiful baby bird! She stands up and pulls a towel over the mirror. There, much better. She crawls back to her bed and within moments she's fast asleep.
Like in Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, all mirrors are magic. They not only reflect the external but also the internal. In the case of Violet, Michelle and Jane, their mirrors were screaming out auras of self-esteem. Beauty is not objective, that there is a specific description to what is beautiful. Beauty is not relative in the sense that anyone can judge another if they are or not beautiful. However, the ability to recognize one's beauty lies in the individual. It is the individual that sets standards of beauty and applies those standards to her and to others. Beauty is a combination of external and internal.
The hand that holds the mirror asks that famous question: Mirror, mirror, hanging on the wall, who is the fairest of them all? And she will get the answer she already knows in her heart. To Violet, her answer is uncertain, her mirror will answer back, "I don't know your majesty, why don't you ask your friends?" To Jane, "Certainly Snow White is fairer than you, heck, any girl is and will be prettier than you. You are damn ugly!" And to Michelle, the magic mirror will faithfully answer, "You, Michelle, are the fairest of them all." And so Michelle closes her compact mirror and gets on the school bus to start her day.
Mirror Universe
By and by the light doth descend and steal
In hours of pondering and solitude
Time stays still to mirror that I do feel
In my mind's quickening and my pen pursued.
Epiphany, a glimpse, as words race by
Where mortal mirrors whisper and reveal
Sorcery that drains that life and soul dry
That potion can't cure nor time can so heal.
Oh sensitive mind, a word or a thought
Reflection of evil lying beneath
That a Queen's mirror will give the truth sought
Even when death is a burden bequeath.
Ivory towers can be made to fall
The mirror will seek the fairest of all.
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posted by Rax @ 09:31 |
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| knowing but not intervening... |
| About Me |
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Name: Rax
Home: Makati, Philippines
About Me: I am many things: aspiring poet, advocate, lawyer, with a good grasp of reality. I am also passionate when it comes to chasing dreams. After all, a childlike imagination is just something I cannot outgrow. Which is why I write(...and refuse to give up anime, fantasy novels and video games... :P)
See my complete profile
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