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Her pony tail swayed, her shoes clacked on the pavement. Sweat beaded on her forehead, her breath heightened. Nothing like another good run on a refreshingly cool spring morning, Jennifer told herself. Maybe someday, she’d enter the Boston marathon. Perhaps go trail jogging on the Appalachian trail. But for now, this was her element, her hometown.
She had started her jogging routine when her depression took a turn. She’d just graduated high school and at eighteen years of age, she was clueless on how to direct her life. She’d read that exercise helped release endorphins, and listening to her favorite songs and waving to the townsfolk she’d grown up with made her day. Nothing in her current situation made her feel better than getting the blood pumping. For whatever reason though, she’d begun to notice strange stares from passers-by the last few days. This morning was no different as she cruised by the Tuttle’s house and noticed their heads turn with wide eyes following her.
“Are you alright, dear?”, shouted Mrs. Tuttle from the porch.
“Yes, Mrs. Tuttle!”, Jennifer replied, puzzled. She didn’t feel she was showing any signs of ailment and wondered why Mrs. Tuttle had asked that question. Oh well, on with the workout. Soon, Jennifer found herself jogging through the heart of town. The sun became strong and she found a desire for an ice cream cone. She decided she’d reward herself and get one.
The little old ice cream shop’s door bell chimed cheerfully. The owner, a cheerful old man named Mr. Askins, greeted her with a glance and turned his back to finish some cleaning. “Ah, Jennifer!”, he greeted her warmly. “Come right on in, have a seat! Will it be the usual for ya?”
“Yes, please!”, she replied cheerfully, licking her lips. Coconut almond was all she could think about. Mr. Askins whipped up her order, with his back still turned to her.
“Out for a run?”, he asked.
“Yep, needed a little pick-me-up to carry me home.”
“Well, this should do it! Here you are!” He turned around jovially and upon looking at her, promptly dropped her order on the tiled floor. A look of surprise and horror spread over his face.
“Mr. Askins, what’s wrong?”, Jennifer asked, concerned and confused.
He couldn’t find the words to answer and stammered. “I… I… I don’t know, are you okay? You look… ill?”
“Ill? Why, I feel fine, I mean I’m a little out of breath, but do I look flush or something?”
“I, uh, I’d suggest going to the doctor, dear,” he answered hesitantly.
“What is going on?”, she asked, pulling herself up and hustling to the bathroom. She wasn’t prepared for what she was about to see. There in the mirror, she didn’t see the eighteen year old youthful self she knew. Instead, she saw a seventy year old version of herself, with wrinkles and grey hair. Horrified, she sank against the wall down to the floor with hands to her face and began to cry. Was this all a horrible dream? The way people were staring at her made sense now, but the situation as a whole didn’t. She’d just looked in the mirror earlier in the morning before her run and she knew for a fact like she didn’t look like this.
She was too afraid to face the world, much less the mirror again. She pinched herself and knew for a face she was awake. She shook her head, not sure what to do. She’d stopped crying after awhile and needed to think clearly now. Was she hallucinating? She had to face the music. She pulled herself up off the floor, took a deep breath, and looked squarely in the mirror.
And… she was back to normal. No longer did she have grey, stringy hair or wrinkles on her face. Instead, she was back to her normal, eighteen year old self. She shook her head and splashed water in her face; she was not ready for such an emotional roller coaster. She stepped out into the ice cream shop to see a few customers and Mr. Askins, who looked just as puzzled as she did. She ran home before Askins had any chance to say anything to her.
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Jennifer lay in her bed, staring up at the ceiling, tossing and catching a little red ball in the air. It had only happened earlier that same day, but it felt like the day had dragged on for years. She couldn’t figure out if she’d experienced some glitch in the matrix or… Something else she hadn’t though of yet. But what could it be?
Then a thought hit her. She’d only experienced those looks of disbelief and confusion from others when she was out exercising. Could it be that exercise somehow aged her, until rest somehow returned her to her normal state? The idea seemed absurd to her, but she needed answers. After looking in the mirror and seeing her normal appearance, she reluctantly slid on her jogging shoes.
She took a lap around the neighborhood. A lap that felt like the longest lap of her life. Every step wore on, time slowed. Every second felt like an hour. Every heartbeat reverberated through torso like a bomb. She stooped in front of her house, panting for breath and afraid to look in the mirror.
But she had to.
Slamming the front door wide open, she ran to her room and closed the door behind her. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and stepped in front of the mirror.
And there it was. Somehow, she looked… older. Like she wasn’t eighteen, but perhaps thirty. She looked in amazement, touching her reflection. “So, it is true,” she whispered. A knock at the door startled her. “I’m indecent!”, she shouted, not sure what to say.
“I’m going to bed, honey. Have a goodnight, love you.”
“Love you too, mom,” she exclaimed. She listened patiently as her mother plodded down the hallway and closed the door. She sneaked back out and took another lap. This time, wrinkles began to appear on her delicate face accompanied by some silver streaks in her hair. “Amazing,” she uttered. Another few laps later and her joints could barely hold her up from Parkinson’s. Her body was now the equivalent of a frail seventy year old.
“I can’t tell anyone my secret. A doctor… A therapist… Even Mr. Askins… This is impossible. But perhaps… I could use it to my advantage?” She thought carefully. “If I exercise the right amount, I can go to clubs, bars… The possibilities are endless!”
That summer found Jennifer exercising more than ever. She’d made different aged friends in differing social settings like thirties single groups, fifties bridge clubs, and senior citizen’s bingo events. She got to experience a slice of life from all different walks on the daily. She found it so fascinating that she could be so many different people in one. She thought her secret was safe until one night, when she found herself at a fifty year old CEO’s house. She was enjoying a lavish night under the alias “Marsha Stevens”, an art gallery owner from NYC.
They were sitting on the couch sipping expensive cocktails and talking about life and the struggles of business finances. She glanced in her compact mirror, noting that she was gaining her youth back. “Would you excuse me please? I’d like to step out for a smoke,” she said.
“Please, I didn’t finish my story yet!”, he urged. He was already ten minutes deep into his story about a New York City trip gone wrong.
“Save your spot, I’ll just be right back,” she smiled.
“Please, let me embrace you first,” he asserted.
She began to feel nervous and fidgety. “I’d love to, but I need some fresh air. I don’t feel well.”
“Don’t feel well? Was it dinner? Am I not a good host?”
“No, you’re fine. I’ll just be right back, promise,” she assured him and stood to step outside.
He stood to let her out and opened the door for her. “If you need anything, just let me know, my dear.” He smiled and put his hand on her shoulder. A look of intrigue came over his face and he cocked his head to one side. “My dear, perhaps it’s the way the light casts on your face, but you look younger as though you’ve lost ten years!”
She broke into tears and stole away from his side, leaving him frazzled with more questions than answers.
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Jennifer soon found herself faced with more problems than was worth dealing with, and in a moment of desperation, broke and told her mother Sandy, the only one in her life she could fully trust. “Impossible,” she scoffed. “Are you drunk?”
“No, I’m not,” Jennifer interrupted. She pulled her outside. “Follow me in the car as I jog. You have to see this.”
Sandy saw the seriousness in her daughter’s eyes. “I don’t know why I’m doing this, but okay.” Jennifer started jogging as her mother paced alongside, expecting some kind of prank. They took two laps and her mother started getting impatient. “I don’t know why you have me out here at this God-forsaken hour…”
She stopped mid-sentence as she observed Jennifer’s appearance. A look of horror and shock came over her face and nothing could break her gaze. Her car slowly crashed into the telephone pole, breaking her out of her shock. “Mom, are you okay?”, Jennifer shouted. Her mom broke out of her wordless stupor, but barely.
“What the… how the…”
“Mom, the car’s fine, just a little ding on the front fender. Just follow me. You need to see this. This is my world.” They jogged together, her mom marveling and asking a slew of questions. “Mom, I don’t know,” she answered truthfully. “But I just get older and older and older.” She now appeared sixty.
“This is unbelievable. And you feel that old, too?”
“Yes,” Jennifer quivered. “But the exercise makes me feel great. I’ve never felt better.”
“How is this possible?”, her mom wondered.
“I don’t know, but it’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me. I’ve made so many friends of differing ages. I’ve experience life in its entirety and I haven’t even hit twenty yet,” she wheezed.
“Jen, please, stop and rest for a few minutes. You’re not well.” But Jennifer was too excited reminiscing her fond memories to truly notice.
“I’ve loved so fondly, so deeply. I’ve grown so much and seen so many things.” Her steps grew weary and labored.
“Please Jen, sit down…”
She now appeared eighty and frail. “No mom, I’m fine. This trait is my strength. I’ve never felt better in all my life…” And with that, Jennifer wheezed loudly and fell to the ground dead.
You see, she put too much stock into the one thing she thought defined her life. But no one thing is the prize that defines us. Life is a culmination of many different things, and we should never focus on one thing to become the bane of our existence. Because when we do, we die by the very sword we live by.
~J