THE SEVENTH LOOK ALIKE
Margaret was a gifted child. Her parents knew of this when she identified faces with superb accuracy. As she grew up to be a ten year old she could remember the people who had come to see her when she was just three or so.
The human face fascinated Marge to a great extent. She got to sketching and made wonderful images of her mom and dad, friends and even herself just as she sees it in the mirror every time before she leaves for school. Her favorite person was Mr. Jerry, her science teacher, who recognized her gift and put it to test. He was doing his PhD in forensics and she was of a great help to him recreating faces from skeletons. She looked up to him as her mentor.
On Marge’s thirteenth birthday, Mr. Jerry was an invitee. Her parents had decided to surprise her with his presence. Margaret was greatly pleased to have him there. He presented her a sketch book and paints. As she sat unwrapping, Mr. Jerry knelt down beside her and said “You know Margaret; they say that there are seven people in the world who look alike”. Marge turned to him in innocent surprise and exclaimed “Really? Are there really seven people in the world who look like me?”
“Why don’t you try and find out for yourself?”
These words uttered by her mentor rang in her ears and lingered on… it went from a thought to a question to a possibility and finally to a mission. Marge was determined to find the seven people who resembled her. This was not a game of some kind that fizzled out as she grew but became more and more of an obsession.
She found the first in her high school at the age of sixteen. The second was the paper boy who delivered papers to her grandmother in Oklahoma 206 miles from her home at Dallas. She found it hard to believe that a boy could resemble her but she had to trust her eyes when she saw it for herself. “If little Marge was a boy, she would look just like that”, said her granny.
When she turned twenty, she started giving advertisements in newspapers. There were many who responded but she was satisfied only with two responses. One was a young Spanish girl and another was an Anglo Indian. With the little money the University provided her for her education she couldn’t possibly think of meeting up with them although she longed to. But she made it a point that someday she would, so she maintained contact with them.
For a girl with an undying determination, she managed to find four look alikes. But the heat was still on, she wasn’t willing to stop in spite of all the work she had at the University. She wrote to journals, newspapers, local dailies and communicated through the internet desperately hunting for the remaining three.
She met Don Silverman in her undergraduate years. She thought she would be wasting his time committing to a relationship but he insisted otherwise. Marge and Don got along really well after that.
On a chilly autumn day they were seated in the park.
“Don?” She wasn’t looking at him. Her eyes were transfixed on the falling leaves.
He turned to look at her.
Knowing this she asked, “This hunt of mine, does that bother you in any way?”
“Not at all”, was his prompt reply.
“Do you think its stupid don? Do you think its going nowhere? Do you think…?”
Her flow of questions was suddenly choked by tears.
“Shush! Whispered Don and wrapped her in a warm hug. After a long pause, “You know what Margie?”
“What?” she sniffed.
“I loved you as and when I laid my eyes on you and then when I heard about this search of yours, I loved you more, and girl with each look alike you find; I get to see another you, those grey eyes, those chestnut brown locks, that adorable nose and that heart melting smile. I love this crazy thing you do and I’m crazy about you. You hear me angel?”
“Loud and clear”, Marge smiled…those tears just disappeared into thin air.
Exactly two years later, Margaret found her fifth when she went jogging with Don. The woman just happened to walk past. Out of the five she found, this was only the third she got to speak to. At the end of the day Don could hear her say to herself, “So miracles do happen”.
A week before she left University, she got a mail sent by a ninety year old woman from England claiming to be her look alike. She printed the address and photograph, marked it as ‘6th’ and put it into her bag.
Margaret finished her education, successfully completed a well appreciated project, earned plenty and married Don.
“So where do you want us to go for our honeymoon?” Don asked.
“I don’t know, you tell me”.
“How about we go to India, Spain and England?”
“Three countries?”
“Yes! A triple treat and a chance to meet the rest of your look alikes… and who knows maybe even find the seventh”.
“That sounds like a wonderful idea”.
The Spanish girl named Enya Rodriguez was very excited to see her. She was a bit tanned than her, had lovely black hair and a uni-brow. Marge fixed it for her and they took photos together.
The Anglo-Indian woman was in her early forties. Jennifer David was a nun in the Catholic Church. “God brought you to me and he will guide you on your quest. I feel blessed to have met you. Good luck Margaret Silverman”, she said and drew the cross on her forehead.
Margaret was glad she met these two but she was looking forward to meeting Julianne, the 90 year old lady. By the time they reached the right place in England they were informed that she had passed away only a week back. Marge was crestfallen. “If only I had come here first…”
Her daughter told them “Although you never mentioned about coming to meet her, she had a feeling that you would. In case she dint get to see you, she asked me to give you this note.”
Marge received it and read it, her eyes following each word.
It read-
“It is not everyday we come across someone who looks exactly like you. When I was young, our family moved to England. We lost our pictures when a few of our luggage was thrown overboard to stabilize the boat. As I grew older I was beginning to forget my past until that is, when I saw your post on the web. You may doubt if I’m your look-alike because how I am now, you may be nothing like it, but believe me child, when I saw your face on that webpage, I felt I was looking at myself again, seventy years younger, thank you for being born, thank you for coming looking for me and don’t stop till you have found all seven of us.”
Margaret pulled out the folded printed picture of Julianne and looked at it. She asked her daughter if she had another picture. She led Don and Marge to the hallway where was hung a picture of Julianne in her youth. Marge couldn’t believe her eyes and Don’s mouth fell open. The resemblance was one hundred percent. The human eye cannot spot a difference. The same grey eyes, the nose, the chestnut brown curls and that smile. That day was one day in her life Marge knew she would never forget.
Earlier with Mr. Jerry and now with Julianne words etched in her mind, she was really hell-bent on finding the seventh.
With Don by her side and the media’s support now, her search became well-known and everyone began looking for her seventh and final look alike.
A year went by and Margaret was pregnant with her first baby. Till the doctor rang her up and asked her to give it a rest she did not. Even at home she would search for hours on the internet.
“Honey! Don’t stress yourself out; it’s not good for the baby, said Don.
Realizing what she does could affect the growing baby; Marge stopped thinking about her and decided to drop the search once and for all. Although it was with a heavy heart she decided that it was for the best.
“Maybe I can pick it up where I left it much later”, she said hopefully.
Months passed by, the labor pains came. Don was a gem who helped her and was there at her every beck and call. The delivery was smooth and successful. Margaret gave birth to a healthy baby girl. When the nurse handed the baby to the happy couple, the little angel opened her eyes once to look at her life-givers, revealing its lovely grayness.
“Sweetheart?”
“Yes Don?”
“I think we found your seventh look alike”.
“I think we have.”
“Congratulations. What should we name her?”
“Julianne”
Bon Jovi sang-“When you want to give up and your heart’s about to break
Remember that you’re perfect; God makes no mistakes”
WHEN YOU ARE JUST ABOUT TO GIVE UP ON SOMETHING…JUST TAKE A MOMENT AND THINK OF WHY YOU HELD ON FOR SO LONG…….
STORY BY S.NIVEDYA
Margaret was a gifted child. Her parents knew of this when she identified faces with superb accuracy. As she grew up to be a ten year old she could remember the people who had come to see her when she was just three or so.
The human face fascinated Marge to a great extent. She got to sketching and made wonderful images of her mom and dad, friends and even herself just as she sees it in the mirror every time before she leaves for school. Her favorite person was Mr. Jerry, her science teacher, who recognized her gift and put it to test. He was doing his PhD in forensics and she was of a great help to him recreating faces from skeletons. She looked up to him as her mentor.
On Marge’s thirteenth birthday, Mr. Jerry was an invitee. Her parents had decided to surprise her with his presence. Margaret was greatly pleased to have him there. He presented her a sketch book and paints. As she sat unwrapping, Mr. Jerry knelt down beside her and said “You know Margaret; they say that there are seven people in the world who look alike”. Marge turned to him in innocent surprise and exclaimed “Really? Are there really seven people in the world who look like me?”
“Why don’t you try and find out for yourself?”
These words uttered by her mentor rang in her ears and lingered on… it went from a thought to a question to a possibility and finally to a mission. Marge was determined to find the seven people who resembled her. This was not a game of some kind that fizzled out as she grew but became more and more of an obsession.
She found the first in her high school at the age of sixteen. The second was the paper boy who delivered papers to her grandmother in Oklahoma 206 miles from her home at Dallas. She found it hard to believe that a boy could resemble her but she had to trust her eyes when she saw it for herself. “If little Marge was a boy, she would look just like that”, said her granny.
When she turned twenty, she started giving advertisements in newspapers. There were many who responded but she was satisfied only with two responses. One was a young Spanish girl and another was an Anglo Indian. With the little money the University provided her for her education she couldn’t possibly think of meeting up with them although she longed to. But she made it a point that someday she would, so she maintained contact with them.
For a girl with an undying determination, she managed to find four look alikes. But the heat was still on, she wasn’t willing to stop in spite of all the work she had at the University. She wrote to journals, newspapers, local dailies and communicated through the internet desperately hunting for the remaining three.
She met Don Silverman in her undergraduate years. She thought she would be wasting his time committing to a relationship but he insisted otherwise. Marge and Don got along really well after that.
On a chilly autumn day they were seated in the park.
“Don?” She wasn’t looking at him. Her eyes were transfixed on the falling leaves.
He turned to look at her.
Knowing this she asked, “This hunt of mine, does that bother you in any way?”
“Not at all”, was his prompt reply.
“Do you think its stupid don? Do you think its going nowhere? Do you think…?”
Her flow of questions was suddenly choked by tears.
“Shush! Whispered Don and wrapped her in a warm hug. After a long pause, “You know what Margie?”
“What?” she sniffed.
“I loved you as and when I laid my eyes on you and then when I heard about this search of yours, I loved you more, and girl with each look alike you find; I get to see another you, those grey eyes, those chestnut brown locks, that adorable nose and that heart melting smile. I love this crazy thing you do and I’m crazy about you. You hear me angel?”
“Loud and clear”, Marge smiled…those tears just disappeared into thin air.
Exactly two years later, Margaret found her fifth when she went jogging with Don. The woman just happened to walk past. Out of the five she found, this was only the third she got to speak to. At the end of the day Don could hear her say to herself, “So miracles do happen”.
A week before she left University, she got a mail sent by a ninety year old woman from England claiming to be her look alike. She printed the address and photograph, marked it as ‘6th’ and put it into her bag.
Margaret finished her education, successfully completed a well appreciated project, earned plenty and married Don.
“So where do you want us to go for our honeymoon?” Don asked.
“I don’t know, you tell me”.
“How about we go to India, Spain and England?”
“Three countries?”
“Yes! A triple treat and a chance to meet the rest of your look alikes… and who knows maybe even find the seventh”.
“That sounds like a wonderful idea”.
The Spanish girl named Enya Rodriguez was very excited to see her. She was a bit tanned than her, had lovely black hair and a uni-brow. Marge fixed it for her and they took photos together.
The Anglo-Indian woman was in her early forties. Jennifer David was a nun in the Catholic Church. “God brought you to me and he will guide you on your quest. I feel blessed to have met you. Good luck Margaret Silverman”, she said and drew the cross on her forehead.
Margaret was glad she met these two but she was looking forward to meeting Julianne, the 90 year old lady. By the time they reached the right place in England they were informed that she had passed away only a week back. Marge was crestfallen. “If only I had come here first…”
Her daughter told them “Although you never mentioned about coming to meet her, she had a feeling that you would. In case she dint get to see you, she asked me to give you this note.”
Marge received it and read it, her eyes following each word.
It read-
“It is not everyday we come across someone who looks exactly like you. When I was young, our family moved to England. We lost our pictures when a few of our luggage was thrown overboard to stabilize the boat. As I grew older I was beginning to forget my past until that is, when I saw your post on the web. You may doubt if I’m your look-alike because how I am now, you may be nothing like it, but believe me child, when I saw your face on that webpage, I felt I was looking at myself again, seventy years younger, thank you for being born, thank you for coming looking for me and don’t stop till you have found all seven of us.”
Margaret pulled out the folded printed picture of Julianne and looked at it. She asked her daughter if she had another picture. She led Don and Marge to the hallway where was hung a picture of Julianne in her youth. Marge couldn’t believe her eyes and Don’s mouth fell open. The resemblance was one hundred percent. The human eye cannot spot a difference. The same grey eyes, the nose, the chestnut brown curls and that smile. That day was one day in her life Marge knew she would never forget.
Earlier with Mr. Jerry and now with Julianne words etched in her mind, she was really hell-bent on finding the seventh.
With Don by her side and the media’s support now, her search became well-known and everyone began looking for her seventh and final look alike.
A year went by and Margaret was pregnant with her first baby. Till the doctor rang her up and asked her to give it a rest she did not. Even at home she would search for hours on the internet.
“Honey! Don’t stress yourself out; it’s not good for the baby, said Don.
Realizing what she does could affect the growing baby; Marge stopped thinking about her and decided to drop the search once and for all. Although it was with a heavy heart she decided that it was for the best.
“Maybe I can pick it up where I left it much later”, she said hopefully.
Months passed by, the labor pains came. Don was a gem who helped her and was there at her every beck and call. The delivery was smooth and successful. Margaret gave birth to a healthy baby girl. When the nurse handed the baby to the happy couple, the little angel opened her eyes once to look at her life-givers, revealing its lovely grayness.
“Sweetheart?”
“Yes Don?”
“I think we found your seventh look alike”.
“I think we have.”
“Congratulations. What should we name her?”
“Julianne”
Bon Jovi sang-“When you want to give up and your heart’s about to break
Remember that you’re perfect; God makes no mistakes”
WHEN YOU ARE JUST ABOUT TO GIVE UP ON SOMETHING…JUST TAKE A MOMENT AND THINK OF WHY YOU HELD ON FOR SO LONG…….
STORY BY S.NIVEDYA
3 comments:
i read only two of ur compositions and "wow".. i dnt knw wat to say.. dis one is really gud..
that moral... oh my god!! thats super.. u r damn rite... i thot i wil give up waiting for her.. but u made me realize its wrong.. i will wait... and thank u... next time i get time i will read ur other compositions... Keep Rocking..!! God Bless this wonderful talent of yours...!!
gr8 da
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