The Mirror of Regrets

Chapter 1 — The Mirror That Stole Her Joy

Every night, Claire stood in front of her mirror.
Not to fix her hair. Not to put on makeup.

No. To count what was missing.

"Not pretty enough. Not thin enough. Not rich enough."

The mirror had become a chalkboard of failures, and she was the teacher, mercilessly correcting herself.

Each night, she went to bed smaller, emptier. As if her reflection stole a little more of her light, piece by piece.

Chapter 2 — The Question That Shattered Her Ritual

One evening, as Claire muttered “I wish I had more, I wish I were better,” a little voice interrupted her.

Her daughter, standing in the doorway, tilted her head:

— “Mom… why don’t you ever say what you already have?”

The question fell like lightning. For the first time in years, Claire didn’t know what to answer.

Chapter 3 — The Office That Drained Her

The next morning, Claire went to work. Her colleague, Mark, was always the same:
Complaining about his salary. About the boss. About his life.

Claire tried, many times, to offer another perspective.
— “But at least you…”
— “No, Claire. You don’t understand. Everything is bad.”

Every word was a wall. Every attempt fell into a void.

The more she listened to him, the more her old mirror whispered inside her: “You’re right, everything is missing.”

Chapter 4 — The Client Who Saw Differently

That afternoon, Claire had to meet a client. A man in his sixties, gentle eyes, worn suit.

They talked numbers, deadlines, projects. Then, out of nowhere, he said:

— “You know, people think I’m unlucky because I don’t have much. But I wake up every morning, and I still get to work. That’s a gift. Gratitude makes life lighter.”

Claire froze. The words echoed the question of her daughter.
Her chest tightened, then softened.

In that moment, she realized: The lesson she couldn’t give to her colleague… life had just delivered it to her.

Chapter 5 — A New Reflection

That night, Claire stood in front of the mirror again.
Her lips trembled.

But instead of whispering her lacks, she began:

"I have a daughter who loves me. I have work. I have health. I have today."

And for the first time, the mirror didn’t look like an enemy.
It looked like a window.
A window to what was already there, waiting to be seen.

Epilogue — Peace

Her colleague at the office never changed.
But Claire did.

Because she finally understood: you don’t find peace by fixing what is missing.
You find peace by seeing what is already here.

✨ Moral: The world doesn’t change when you get what you lack.
It changes when you see what you already have.