Reflections

Long ago, a boy once looked into the mirror,
hoping to see his reflection, but when he looked,
he saw that of a young man looking back at him instead.
This greatly troubled the boy and he spoke,
asking the reflection why it was that of a young man,
instead of that of himself.
The reflection replied to the boy,
with the wisdom of only that attained through experience,
"I am you, several years down the road.
You do not yet know of the choices that will lead you here,
but they will lead you to the best days of your life."
With that, the reflection faded, and the boy was staring at himself once more.

Several years later, the young man smiled,
having looked back at who he used to be,
knowing that his past led him to this point, and he was who he wanted to be.
He then pulled out a small mirror that he kept within his uniform, and gazed into it.
He was shocked to see the reflection of a middle aged man,
grizzled and worn out looking, a scar on his cheek and white beginning to show in his hair.
The man spoke to the young soldier, his bitterness burning within the young man's ears.
"Your choices have condemned you to a dark, and lonely road.
The actions you will perform here, today, will seal your fate,
leaving you hollow and bitter like me."
The reflection faded, leaving that of the young man with a troubled expression.

A middle aged man sat alone on his front porch,
grumbling in his bitterness and longing for his former happiness.
It was when he had a sudden impulse to look at his reflection in the nearby mirror,
that he was greeted by the countenance of an elderly man,
Wizened and scarred, seasoned in his age and content.
The elderly man smiled, and spoke to the middle aged man,
"Your bitterness has been a part of you for too long due to decisions that you did not make.
Let it go, and enjoy the good that you do have in your life, for life is too short for one to dwell on the past.
Know that your actions saved lives, protected those you...