The Woman in the Mirror

The Woman in the Mirror

By Laura Schiller

Just before leaving the bathroom, she turns around one last time to take a look in the mirror. This is her first job interview and she is nervous to the point of shaking; every hair has to be in place. She stands in front of the long mirror above the sinks, bathed in cold yellow neon light, taking stock of her appearance.

Her navy blue power suit is perfectly unwrinkled, the pantyhose with no runs in them, clear nail polish unchipped, makeup subtle but flattering, and even her wild black curls are obediently pinned up. So far, so good. She gives herself an encouraging smile, but it wobbles and she has to take a deep breath to keep from panicking.

A job interview? Me? How could this have happened? Wasn’t she scouring the shops for a prom dress just yesterday? And playing tag in the schoolyard the day before? And now here she is in her stiff new suit already, carrying a university degree in her black purse, pretending to be an adult. It’s as if time has suddenly fast-forwarded without her intention, even though she can remember everything perfectly – drafting her resumé with painstaking care, praying over the mailbox, waiting for an eternity until that phone call finally arrived. And now here she is, with five minutes to go until her future career is decided.

Looking at her face in the mirror, she realizes with a shock that the face has changed. When did her cheekbones become so visible? Has she been losing weight? Or is it just as her mother said, that she has ‘grown into’ her face? Not that it’s a bad change. Actually, it’s quite an improvement on the round-faced, bumbling figure she thought she was stuck with forever.

I look... like a grown-up woman. Like someone who’s ready for this.

She turns to leave, her high heels clicking smartly across the floor. Not only her appearance gives her comfort; she knows her credentials are impressive and she knows exactly why she wants to work at this company. She’ll show that HR director what she’s made of.

She smiles to herself again; this time her smile is real.