You Do Not Have to Fix Your Expression

The afternoon light hits the glass just right, and for a second, the face staring back feels like a stranger's. You have spent hours smoothing your edges, holding your breath, wearing a mask so perfectly that you forgot what lies beneath it.

But the light does not need your performance to find you. It sees the exhaustion behind the eyes you tried to hide.

Jesus looked at the crowds and had compassion because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. He did not ask them to stand up straighter before he cared for them.

The same light that saw their weariness sees yours right now, in the middle of the day. It knows the weight of the face you show the world, and it loves the one underneath even more.

You do not have to fix your expression before you come home. The light is already waiting for you to drop the act.