BLESSD

He stared at himself in the bathroom mirror as a part of his daily morning routine. Today, a bit more unfamiliar with what he was looking at than yesterday. Today he turns 25. The man in the mirror, hair beginning to gray, face beginning to sag, and a smile that inverts slightly every time he takes a peek at it. That man in the mirror turns 50 today. They both have what is known as Progeria; a rare genetic condition that results in a child’s body aging rapidly. Most children with Progeria don’t make it past the age of 13, but fortunately enough for him, doctors have made a breakthrough that has slowed down the aging process significantly.

A tear began to leave his eye as a young woman’s arm reaches in and wipes it away before it has a chance to run down his face. “Russel Brackett, you are one fine man. I love the way these gray hairs make you look.” She ran her fingers through his cloudy hair. “I’m in love with you just the way you are and would have it no other way.” She walks up behind him and wraps her arms around his chest in a bear hug. You could see a smile start to form on Russel’s face as he placed his hands on hers and added his embrace.

“The doctor left a message this morning. She said in order to keep up with the treatment we’ll have to come up with another $20,000.” Russel said, his voice beginning to waver as the embrace began to loosen. The young woman replied, “It’s fine. I’ll see about picking up some extra shifts or see about getting a part-time job. We’ll get through this. As we always have.”

“No.” Russel responded, “I can’t let you do that. You’ll wear yourself out. Before you know it we’ll both begin to look weathered.” He looked himself over in the mirror again, running his hands over the place where his cheekbones used to be. “Don’t worry, Kim. I’ll figure something out.” He turned himself around in her arms and kissed her gently on the forehead before running to leave. As he stood in the doorway he looked back and gave her a wink. “It’s a blessing we made it this far.” He said.

He had no plan. In fact, he had no idea where he was even going once he got in his car. He let out a deep sigh, put the car in drive, and pulled out of the driveway. After a short while, he realized exactly where he was headed.

Pulling into the parking lot of First Federal Bank, he sat in the spot directly in front of the entrance and stared emotionless. He glanced down at the passenger seat where a loaded .357 magnum sat. He looked at it for a few seconds, and when he brought his gaze back up to the bank he noticed a man staring at him, intently. The man looked to be in his forties. He was handsome, well dressed, and in great shape. He was holding a black notebook in one hand and an envelope in the other.

Keith Ward was on his way into the bank to make a deposit. Two years prior Keith was let go from his dream job as a Senior Graphic Designer because the company wanted to go in a different direction. For the next two years, he had been bouncing from job to job while looking for that perfect fit. He worked odd jobs to keep a roof over his family’s heads and food on their table. Had it not been for his wife earning a pretty decent living they would probably be in a much more compromising situation. In fact, it was very close to becoming a reality as their two children grow older and require more financial investment.

The pressure to provide began to put a strain on Keith mentally; to the point where he didn’t believe his marriage would last. He began to struggle between faith and giving in to the temptations of life. But feeling a breakthrough on the horizon, he knew he needed to hold on and wait patiently; for it would not come in his own timing. However, he didn’t have time to spare; his family was already beginning to fall apart.

Keith was always a man of high character, even when things didn’t go his way. One night while working at a local art store he found himself in a conversation about spirituality with the HR Manager at an Advertising Agency. There was an immediate connection as they talked about work being carried out as a form of worship. She ended up getting him an interview at her agency a week later, which eventually lead to him becoming the new Lead Designer.

The manager also knew of his situation at home and wanted to offer assistance where she could, so she got the agency to throw in a $20,000 advance that he would eventually work off within the first year.

His trip to the bank was to deposit the advance and get his family back into a place of stability. But before he could walk in he felt something tugging at him. It was coming from the direction of a parked car directly in front of the entrance. It was a paralyzing feeling and he couldn’t quite shake it off. He couldn’t take his eyes off the man. Finally, he quit trying to deny the feeling and headed straight for the car.

As Keith walked up, Russel rolled down his window. Keith noticed the gun on the passenger seat and began to worry a little. “I think I’m supposed to give you this,” said Keith. “I don’t know why. In fact, I’m pretty sure that I’ll ruin life as I know it by doing this.” He quickly stretched out his arm to hand Russel the envelope before he could second guess what he was doing.

Russel looked at Keith, puzzled. It had taken him a few seconds but he was finally able to muster up a word. “What? What is this?” Russel slowly reached for the envelope making sure to keep his eyes on Keith the entire time in case he decided to try something funny. “All I want in return is to know your name,” said Keith. “Why?” Russel replied. “Because in a couple of years I’m going to look you up and see how this has blessed you.” Russel was really confused now, but he decided to give the gentleman his name. “Russel. Russel Brackett.”

Keith opened up his black notebook to a page that had a list of names and wrote ‘Russel Brackett’ at the bottom of the list. He placed his attached bookmark string on the page and closed the book. He reached out his hand for a handshake. Russel obliged, hesitantly, as he couldn’t deny his attraction to this man any longer. The two men sat there shaking hands and looking into each other's eyes for a few seconds and then finally let go even though they felt the urge to stay there.

“Keith Ward. I’ll be seeing you, Russel Brackett.” Keith said, right before he headed back to his car.

Russel sat there for a moment looking down at this mysterious blank envelope. It wasn’t even sealed as the lid was just tucked inside of itself. He opened the envelope and inside it was a check. He took the check out and began to cry immediately. It was a check for $20,000. He looked over in the direction of Keith’s car as it pulled out of its parking spot. Managing to get a glimpse of the license plate, he read … BLESSD. Russel nodded in agreement and then smiled.