Author's note: Today, I have returned from a 10-day expedition to Israel. After a very long flight, I simply need to crash, and have no energy to write a story. So, with much sadness, I'm afraid I must take this day for myself.
Instead of enjoying a story . . .
Gaze at this screen. Squint your eyes slightly, possibly turning on a light in the room or tilting the screen back or to one side, until you can see your own reflection.
Your head should be floating in the middle of the screen, eyes open but focused as you strain to view both your own reflection and this text. Your familiar face greets you, the face that you have seen every day when you look in the mirror.
Can you see it?
This face, this image that you see, is yours alone to behold. No one else has viewed this face. When you venture out into the world, each day, whether it's to a job, to buy groceries, or to simply be immersed in the great sea of humanity, the face that you present to the world is not this face. It is similar, yes, but it is not this face.
Do you know why?
This face is different. This face is ever so slightly off. If you showed this face to your friends, your family, your loved ones, they would recognize it. They would know it is you. But in the back of their minds, a naggling suspicion would tell them that it is not quite right.
But why is this, you wonder?
It's in the details.
You see, this face you see is reversed. This is not your face. The image that greets you in the bathroom, in the mirror, in this screen, is the reversed reflection of your face. What is on the left is on the right. What is on the right is on the left. (The top and bottom are still the same, yes, but then it would just be way too obvious.)
So smile, as you look at yourself. This is a private face, a personal face, a view that is meant for you and only you to enjoy. The strangers of the world will never have a chance to see this aspect. So go ahead. Make a silly face. Smear your makeup. It's okay. This is meant just for you.
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