“When Mirrors Refused to Reflect”

By Riya Yadav

One morning, the mirrors called a strike.

No warning, no cracks — just silence.

Faces leaned in for validation,

and met nothing but their own confusion.

Vanity lights flickered nervously,

makeup kits stood unemployed.

Even puddles in the streets refused to gossip

about who looked back at them.

The city panicked.

Salons shut down. Cameras blinked in disbelief.

People stared at blank glass

and saw everything they’d avoided.

Without reflections,

eyes learned to look inward.

They found wrinkles shaped like wisdom,

scars stitched with stories,

and smiles that didn’t need symmetry.

Some wept — not for their lost image,

but for all the years they’d never met themselves.

And when the mirrors finally returned,

they reflected softly,

as if afraid to interrupt the peace.

From then on,

the world didn’t ask, “How do I look?”

It whispered, “Do I see?”

By Riya Yadav