Reflection

We have all heard the quote by C. S. Lewis, “We read to know we are not alone.” But why do we write? We write to come to know who we are, what we think, and what we believe. I believe this to be true even if one’s work is fiction. In writing, one comes to discover their feelings and belief systems. When I write, it is as if I were holding up a mirror. I have a hand mirror where one side is . . . a normal reflection (if there is such thing as a normal reflection). The flip side magnifies my face so I can see, well, more than I care to see of myself.

That is writing. Our reflection speaks to us. It might tell us, you are afraid, or full of a joy you are choosing to suppress, or maybe that it would like to try on a new idea, thought, or belief to see how they fit. As we try on new ideas or beliefs, they will either fit or they won’t. We often see this with adolescents. They try to be something they are not. This is because they are trying to sort out who they are and who they want to be. I often have to tell Reflection that I am not in the mood for trying on. In trying on, I may come to discover that something doesn’t really fit that for some reason I desperately want to believe does. Or it could be the other way. I want to think I don’t feel a certain way and I really do. Reflection is brutally honest and that is good even if it doesn’t feel so good. Writing allows us to look at ourselves and subsequently, we come to know ourselves better.

So, I put my pen to paper (or my fingers to the keyboard) and see what and who I am. And you know what is most cool? When Jesus talks to us by way of Reflection . Because He will if He is in your life. That is my favorite.