People frequently ask me about what I am reading and why. I often hesitate to share the titles of books I am reading until I have finished them and can whole-heartedly endorse them. The book I have re-read the most times and marked with the most underlines and post-it note tags is titled, The Mirror Theory by Betsy Otter-Thompson. This book describes the idea that we see in the world only what we need to see, to be shown the work we need to do within ourselves. The concept of mirrors in this book, relates to emotions. The idea is that we will only feel negative emotions when we are carrying them inside of us and we need to heal the judgement or belief which is creating that negative emotion. We will only have a negative reaction to the negative emotions, or actions, of others when we need to heal that emotion within ourselves. So for instance if I am feeling intense fear or anger when I am in the presence of someone who is acting out anger, it means that I have fear or anger within me that I need to heal. If I don’t have fear or anger within me which I need to heal, then I will only feel compassion or Love when someone is acting out anger in my presence.
The Mirror Theory – A Favorite Book
When I first started reading this book I almost put it down and never picked it up again. It started with, what I thought of, as a very sensationally, contrived premise and that was a turn-off for me. But, because I had been referred to the book by someone I thoroughly respected, I kept reading and after about fifty pages, I was hooked. As I continued to read I started highlighting statements and sections of the book, which is very unusual for me. When I was about halfway through the book I found a statement which struck me so powerfully that I did not want it to get lost in the mass of highlighted areas so I went out and bought some post-it note tabs. When I finished reading the book I didn’t even put it down, and just started reading it again from the beginning. At this time I can’t even tell you how many times I have read the book from start to finish, because I quit counting after five or six repetitions, (that does not count the many times I have picked it up and re-read some of the highlighted and tabbed entries).
Now, I know that books are very personal things. Books I love are often viewed as trash or completely uninteresting to people I love and respect. Also books which have excited me at different times in the past can seem rather bland or even ridiculous to me today. This says more about me and my struggles, growth and setbacks than it does about those books. I realize that The Mirror Theory came into my life at just the right time and showed me just the things I needed in a way that resonated with me, to help me keep a Loving perspective on life and my journey.
The premise which almost made me throw the book out, is that it tells the story of Jesus and his family. His brothers, sisters, biological father, step-father, grandmother, cousins, etc. The book uses the story of Jesus and how he learned to recognize the Mirrors in his life, to illustrate how Mirrors work and how they show us exactly what we need to heal within ourselves. In the story Jesus learned from his interactions with his family as they struggled to learn the lessons from the Mirrors in their lives. As he grew to understand himself, he was able to heal himself and be a role model for others who wish to heal.
As I have studied and come to understand the work of Dr. Michael Ryce, I feel The Mirror Theory is completely compatible with these teachings and it gives some wonderful metaphors and stories to illustrate the way Love works in our lives.
We come from Love, we are made of Love, we are Love. Everything else is false.