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?
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