Mirror, Mirror

Last night after her bath Charlotte was brushing her hair by herself, because God forbid she lets me do it for her.  She spent about 5 minutes combing it out and then ran to the mirror in the bathroom.  She looked at herself and said “oh wow I am so beautiful!”

I cried.  And not only because it was one of those sweet moments with your kid.  But because it showed me how she isn’t yet tainted by the world around her.  When I look into a mirror I am only focusing on the negative.  A pimple here, a wrinkle there.  Gray hairs that won’t stop sprouting.  A double chin.  Love handles, stretch marks, scars.  When Charlotte looked into that mirror last night and said she was beautiful, it reminded me that I when I look into a mirror, I need to see and say these things out loud too.  Because I want her to always look into that mirror and say she’s beautiful.  I don’t want her to see me look at myself and complain about my appearance.  I don’t want to be the one responsible for changing the way she sees herself.

It never ceases to amaze me how sometimes Charlotte teaches me more than I teach her.  Kids are amazing.