If I were a mirror what would I see?
A thousand angelic faces staring at me or
Sinister grins beneath frosted beards and crooked smiles

If I were a mirror what would I see?Looking my way…
Swallowed up in the reflection of glassed reality

If I were a mirror what would I see?
Make-up and shaves transposing hair, eyes, skin, and then…
Perhaps, youth in monologue aspiring to become an awaited fantasy…
Lovers costumed in fake fur and jewels; readying for evening gala and midnight champagne

If I were a mirror what would I see?Would I see your tears begging for attention; your mind bending for understanding?
Would I be like those who rush through life; moving on to what isseemingly idealistic, presumptuous and perfect?

If I were a mirror I would want to reflect…
The compassionate heart; the God within
If I could tell you of all the faces I have seen
I would quietly guide you toward something more than what is seen!

I would tell you sorrow does not last forever
I would reveal the beauty of self
I’d open eyes of the bullied to see courage behind eyes of fear
I’d open hearts of compassion as each smile restored peace to anguish and grief

If I were a mirror I would be a reflection of a compassionate heart
Wrapping around the you looking untiringly at me

Spanish translation by the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas. Traducción al español por las Hermanas de la Misericordia de las Américas

Larretta Rivera-Williams, rsm, is originally from Winston-Salem, North Carolina. She is coordinator of pastoral care at St. Leo the Great Catholic Church in her hometown. Since entering the Sisters of Mercy in 1982, Sister Larretta has ministered as an elementary, secondary, and divinity school educator.  An abstract artist, Sister Larretta has also written and produced plays as well as directed and choreographed.

Prior to her ministry at St. Leo, Sister Larretta was Coordinator of Volunteers at Catholic Charities and an Associate Chaplain at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

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