What do I see in the Mirror

I stand looking in the mirror and what do I see

I see a woman

I see a friend

I see an aunt

I see a daughter

But then I look deeper and what do I see

I see someone who loves God

I see someone who tries to obey God

I see someone who struggles with sin

I see someone who tries to take life one day at a time

But then I look deeper and what do I see

I see a small girl who is broken

I see her trying to stand, but doesn’t know how

I see her afraid of being alone

I see her afraid of relationships

I see her afraid of being hurt again

I see her trying to trust and love

So, I stop looking and try to help her

But she is scared

She doesn’t know me

How will I get her to trust me

She wasn’t taught how to love

She doesn’t know how to open her heart to others

So, I take her hand to help her to stand

I tell her that

We will learn how to love together

We will to learn how to trust together

We will learn how to stand together

We will start to heal together

Now I stand looking in the mirror and what do I see

A woman starting to know herself

A woman starting to love herself

A woman starting to love others

A woman starting to trust herself and others

A woman starting to open up to others

And I see a smile come to her lips

And I see the tears of healing start to fall from her eyes

-Hope Hartwigsen