Chain of Mirrors
Thursday, September 4th, 2008
I was fascinated by mirrors when I was about four years old. One of my earliest memories is holding a make-up mirror up to a larger one over the bathroom sink. The effect it created was one long chain of mirrors, one after another, the same image re-created, getting smaller and smaller and curving off into infinity.
I remember thinking that if stepping into another dimension were ever possible, it would involve playing two mirrors off one another. I used to stand at the sink and imagine crawling into the smallest image I could see, which usually consisted of my eye, a section of my forehead and hair, and my fist that was holding the smaller mirror. I’d crane my neck to try to change perspectives – to see where the chain of mirrors disappeared to. This all feels like a dream now – and it did then too. I felt like I had company there with me, like I could walk in to meet an audience of watchers, or someone could step out to be with me. And, I remember this always happened in the summer timean with the sun shining and windows open, better images on fair weather days.
