By Katt
“We do not hate ourselves, because that is counterproductive to what we are trying to do.” This is a sentence I find my reflection saying back to me before every shower or change out outfit.
My reflection stares back at me with blue eyes that embody a calm pond, home to curious fish and sun bathing turtles. On the outside, this pond is my happy place. It is where I send myself to meditate and remind myself that to love oneself is a journey with no end, only rest stops.
During this meditative stare down with myself, I take my hair down from the bun it has been trapped in all day. Its shine may dull in the winter, but auburn burns brightest in the spring and summer sun. It keeps my soul warm. And this effect cannot be replicated though box dyes, which makes it my own organic safety blanket.
Removing this blanket from my shoulders reveals freckles that turn into an infinite game of connect-the-dots down my arms and ending on my hands which have oddly similar patterns.
My reflection pulls my gaze back up to meet her own and the pond in our eyes expand into an ocean. There is still more to learn to love about myself waiting in the depths, but to find it takes patience and I have little. So I let my reflection take over and walk into the waves.