"Life is like a mirror; you get out of it exactly what you put into it."
Obviously, this is not a physical mirror. We don't have any say so about our physical inheritances, and it's not what matters most anyway. Imagine a mirror that could capture your inner self. When you'd look into that mirror, would you like what you'd see? If not, would you change what you didn't like, or would you walk around with it, hoping it wouldn't be noticed? Whoever we are--rich/poor, black/white, tall/short, etc.-- that mirror will show us things about ourselves we don't like; some things we can change and others we can't. But just because we can't change them doesn't mean things can't be changed. "Changed" begins with a different mindset. Most of us change our behavior, and there's something to be said for that, but what really needs to change is the way we think. Stinkin' thinkin' plagues us all because the society we live in stinks! Apathy, insensitivity, greed, anger, bitterness, rage, injustice, racism, bigotry, violence, negative energy, and the like has infiltrated every aspect of the world we live in, and we've all been effected in one way or some others. If you're not the perpetrator/victim of any of the above, for example, you're the one who won't let your children play with the next door neighbor because of something that happened to someone else. Maybe you're not the one telling the jokes; you're the one listening to them and laughing. Or maybe you're the one who hears it and doesn't like it, but is too afraid to stand against it. You're the one who overheard the plot against your neighbor, but, in an effort to save your own skin, you won't come forward with the information to incriminate the offender. Then you go home and tell your kids that the best thing to do in a situation like that is to keep your mouth shut. And they grow up believing that.
We're all effected by someone's stinkin' thinkin'--past or present. Some of the things captured in that mirror will be the reflection of someone you admire. Take a long, hard look at that person's true character. Then ask yourself if that person was truly admirable. Maybe their attributes were admirable for them during their lifetime and conducive to their lifestyle, but outdated, antiquated, or unacceptable for yours. Have your own personality/character! You do YOU better than anyone else. All the Elvis Presley /Michael Jackson/John Wayne impersonators remind us that just because they were phenomenal at what they did doesn't mean that it's for everyone else to do. Elvis was Elvis. Not everyone who liked his style of dress, the way he talked or his dance moves should put on a pair of blue suede shoes or do the Jailhouse Rock! (Yes, I know Elvis only wore them once on the Steve Allen show.) Not everyone should wear a Jheri Curl, a studded glove and moonwalk, either. And well, Dah haa dah haa...
Look in your mirror and see beyond the physical you. What do you see? Are you in need of change? If so, start with the root of your thoughts. You are what you think. If you think you're no good, you will see a good-for-nothing reflection. Who told you that you were no good? Was it an alcoholic parent? Was it a mother filled with her own shame? Was it an envious/jealous friend or co-worker? Was it a hater? Was it YOU? Examine the root of that thought and you will see the root of your being. Find something you like about your character and feed that into that mirror.
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