(A short story by Ghazali Mufti)
Like every other day, Sarah stood in front of the large mirror, admiring herself before heading out for work at an international architectural firm. At 33, she had it all; a life of independence, financial security, a degree in architectural engineering from a well-reputed university, a top-paying job, and a luxurious Toronto Lakeshore condo. Above all, she also managed to come out almost unscathed from a four-year-long abusive marriage.
But today, something was different when she stared at the mirror, she was still looking as radiant as ever, her impeccable cream-coloured top was perfectly complementing her skin tone, all the small wrinkles and minor skin blemishes were well hidden behind the foundation. “There is something still not right,” she said to herself in a muted tone, as if someone may hear her self-critique. Her introspection was suddenly cut short by the annoying sound of a car horn coming from the open window. She gazed towards the window in curiosity. At a distance, she could see the leaves on the large maple trees in the process of changing colours from lush green to bright red. She always loved the change in season and the beautiful bright colours that the leaves transitioned into.
Sarah’s focus shifted back to the mirror, she looked at herself minutely and noticed a lock of grey hair on her front head crisscrossing in a sea of lush dark hair. “These were not there last week,” she muttered with a sense of doubt in her voice. “Maybe they were but I never noticed?” She continued her monologue. A sense of panic struck her at that very moment, she felt as if someone had shaken her from a deep slumber. After a few moments of numbness and disbelief, which almost felt like an eternity to her, she regained her composure. “Why am I so rattled by a lock of grey hair?” She asked herself. Her question was largely met by silence, occasionally interrupted by the sound of traffic coming from the open window. Throughout her life, she had fought all her battles alone, including coping with the early loss of her parents in a car accident, living with an overbearing aunt and escaping from a flawed marriage. Now she almost felt a frisson of schadenfreude at her own expense, by being mocked by a lock of grey hair.
She knew and understood that ageing is a natural process that every soul goes through, but then why did she feel as if she was completely caught off guard here?
Sarah turned her attention towards the window to avoid being judged by the mirror. She focused again on the leaves, shifting colours from dark green to red when it suddenly dawned to her that like the leaves on these maple trees, she is going through a rite of passage. She is turning into a more beautiful, confident and self-assured person. This moment of reflection gave her an instant lesson to let go and restore her self-confidence. She moved back to the mirror with a measured gait and looked again at the lock of grey hair. This time, instead of feeling a sense of dread, she felt elated as if she had also passed this rite of passage with flying colours.
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