Mirror

 



I cannot walk past you.

Do I remember what I looked like before?

Or will I see the deformity before me?

How do you look at a mirror without looking?

5 feet away, and I can open the door.

5 feet away, and I can turn off the lights,

But 5 feet away, and I must stand face to face with what I see.

Will I remember what I looked like before, or will I see something else.

Eventually, I have to walk past you.

Please, let me see who I me.

My imagination is enough.

It is why I'm able to see beyond sight.

I can walk past you.

You wait and see.


This poem captures the tensions between self-perception, fear, and transformation.

At the core of it all, this explores the many struggles to confront oneself, either literally or figuratively.

It opens up with a tone set on avoiding, the speaker feels paralyzed by what the mirror (or self) represents.

The deformity that the speaker talks about could be of identity here, but its reality is that the speaker is scared to physically walk past the mirror and see a deformed version of themselves based on an image that was inserted.

Additional symbolisms could perhaps be shame, trauma, or internal change.

Rhetorical questions are asked, expressing the impossible feeling of confronting a situation or oneself while trying to avoid what one fears seeing.

Reaching the middle section, we come across distance. A metaphor used for how close they are to the truth, healing, or confrontation. They can clearly perform ordinary tasks such as opening doors, turning off lights, but facing themselves feels like crossing an emotional threshold.

More towards the end, the speaker begins to speak about their imagination and sight. This implicates a tension between what they imagine ( their inner self, their memories, their identity) and what they physically see. "Beyond sight" suggests spiritual vision or self-knoweledge that doesn't rely on appearances.

The final note is of quiet defiance. There is a regain of sense of power, telling the mirror (or their reflection, or fear itself) that they will overcome the paralysis and reclaim themselves.

This poem could mean:

- Self-confrontation after change or trauma 

- Fear of seeing oneself differently (physically or emotionally)

- Desire for self-acceptance

- The tension between inner perception and outer appearance

It could symbolize someone:

- Recovering from emotional pain, illness, or disfigurement 

- Struggling with identity or self-worth

- Learning to accept themselves again after loss or transformation


What does this poem mean to you?



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