The Mirror Smiles Back

This morning, as I watched Baby J playing on his adventure mat, fascinated by sea creatures and bright colors, I noticed his captivation with the mirror. He watched the baby in the mirror make faces and smiled and laughed at his new friend.

Realizing it was lunch time, he looked away from the mirror and gave me the famous pouty lip. He glanced back at the mirror and noticed that his friend was also making a sad face, which made him push that lower lip out further.

Without thinking, I said, "Who’s that baby?" He looked back at me, wishing I would stop asking questions and would just feed him.

Not wanting my heart to shatter into tiny pieces while witnessing his sadness, I grabbed him, cuddled him and offered him his bottle. As he ate, I thought, "Seriously though, who is that baby?"

That baby in the mirror reacted with the same enthusiasm or poutiness that Baby J shared. Is that how the world works? You smile and the world smiles back? You frown and you get frowns in return? What J and I both realized in that moment is that the baby in the mirror will never smile back on his own.

You have to make the first move. Bam.

So today, even if you’re faking it, smile at that baby in the mirror just to see what kind of reaction you get. And then just for fun, smile at the people you pass. The clerk at the store who just rang up your order. Your typically rude coworker who passes you in the hallway. Your tired husband when he gets home from a long day at work.

How many smiles can you inspire today by becoming the face you want to see in your own mirror?

20 Minutes of Awesomeness

Back in July 2013, I started this blog with the intention that it would encourage me to write on a regular basis.

I have things to say. I have stories to share. And I wanted this to be my outlet. If you view my blog history, you’ll see that I posted three times. Three. And then life happened.

 

My last post was about getting engaged. Since then, I got pregnant, got married (yes, in that order!), had a baby and am now growing a marriage, raising a child, working a full-time job, managing a household, sleeping when I can and trying to fill the remaining 20 minutes of my day with other things I love. 

That 20 minutes is crucial. That 20 minutes is the catalyst for my passion because that’s the 20 minutes that I’m committing to write. I’m not saying that I’m not passionate about my marriage or Baby J because I’m sure you will find many stories about them here, but writing is the external manifestation of my passion. It’s how I share my fire and awesomeness with the world outside my small circle.

I’ve been told that I have a book in me. And if I had a book for every time I’d heard that, I’d have already published a small library of books. Or at least enough books to fill the shelf in my guest bedroom. I’ve started writing many books, but never finished one. But the new one is good. At least the chapters I write in the shower and as I’m falling asleep are good. But they’re lost forever because they don’t make it onto paper. Which is why I’m taking back my 20 minutes to write. 

I just took a class where the speaker talked about owning your actions first thing in the morning. Own it and do it for you. If that means you lunge to the bathroom, own it. If that means you meditate while you brush your teeth, own it. Whether it’s my book or a short blog post, I am owning my 20 minutes of writing. 

That is my commitment to you, my dear reader. Let’s do this.