Time for a Change

I felt like I was in a daze as the ringing phone woke me from a dead sleep.

I barely managed to utter an incoherent, "Hello?"

"Hello, Mrs. Beeker?" came a much-too-chirpy voice.

"Who is this, please?"

"This is Ben, from Collado Insurance. We found the wreck of your car by the tracks of East Island Railroad."

Now that caught my attention. "What? My beautiful Toyota Prius?"

"You don't remember, Mrs. Beeker?"

"Wait... I have an uneasy feeling. It's coming back."

"How are you still alive? Your personal effects were found in the car, with blood on them."

"I don't know what to say," I answered, confused.

"Do you have a twin sister?" asked Ben.

"Not that I know of!" I answered, "My mother said I was a very big baby, a difficult birth. She would remember... and you can call me Lynn."

"Alright, Lynn. I will need to come over, as soon as possible, with some NYPD detectives. We will need to interview you, and take a DNA sample. We need to match your DNA to the blood found in your car."

"No problem, Ben. How about 1 PM?"

"That's perfect. I will let the detectives know."

"Was anyone hurt on the railroad train?" I asked, fearfully.

"You'll be happy to learn that no one died in the East Island Railroad train that hit your car. There were a few bruises, lacerations and broken bones."

"Oh, I'm sorry people were hurt, but I'm so grateful that everyone is alive!"

"Uh, you should also be aware that you left the scene of an accident," Ben answered, with a touch of sympathy.

"Oh, no! But I don't know how I did that."

"Why don't you call a lawyer, to be there when I arrive with the cops. Maybe they can work something out."

After we got off the phone, I called my husband, who was just getting off his shift at the Red Cross.

"Hello, Adam? Did you hear about the accident on the East Island Railroad?"

"Sure, Lynn. They're looking for the driver of the pulverized Prius."

"Well, they found her. It was me."

Meanwhile, I fretted about the strange and unknown circumstances that led to my safe arrival at home, after such a disaster. I checked my body for injuries, and found none. I got down on my knees and prayed a prayer of thanksgiving, and asked for mercy and grace with the authorities, who must certainly be suspicious about the whole sequence of events. What was I doing on the train tracks, anyway? Why was I driving on East Island?

Suddenly a peace came over me that I had never experienced before. I was blessed by God! I had believed in the Lord Jesus Christ for many years, since the 1980s, and I still suffered from emotional problems, trusting that one day, He would make that right, as well. Could this be the day?

But there was more! I had no pain in my knees, as I often do -- which is why I rarely kneel down to pray. I trust that God understands, but now, what a gift! And no back pain -- unbelievable!

I also realized that I had arisen from bed without my glasses, and yet I saw everything clearly. I walked into the bathroom and looked into the mirror. My skin looked markedly younger, and I had a full set of teeth -- exactly what was going on here?

But the smoke alarm was going off, and I suddenly realized that I had started breakfast, and then forgotten about it. The eggs were burnt, the coffee pot had overflowed and gas was escaping from the stove, and the toast was -- well, toast. The kitchen had quickly filled with smoke.

I didn't want all those people to come over, with the apartment smelling of smoke -- what if they decided that I was crazy, and locked me up? First, forgetting how I got home last night, and now, I nearly blew up the kitchen. After shutting off the burners and opening the windows, I sat down on a chair, closed my eyes in deep concentration, and prayed, illogically, that I could go back in time and avoid starting the breakfast, until I was ready to finish making it.

I looked up, and the smoke was gone. It was 9:15, one hour earlier! What in the world just happened?

Did this mean that I now have some special gifts -- first, a younger, healthier body, that is invincible or nearly invincible; and secondly, that I can travel supernaturally through time, and even space? I got down on my newly regenerated knees and thanked God, again.

I wondered if these gifts came with a little amnesia or forgetfulness, but I would just have to pay attention more closely to what was going on, so that I didn't miss anything important again -- like turning off the stove.

What should I do with an amazing gift like this? I felt that it came with a big responsibility.

So in my next act of prayer and concentration, I traveled back to January 2020, and tried to warn people about Covid-19. It wasn't easy, because no one wanted to believe me. But I started with my husband Adam, because he would be more inclined to believe in a miracle -- and besides, when he saw the transformation in my body, it wasn't hard to convince him of the rest. I had been touched by God.

We visited Pastor Harry in his home, and he was surprised to see me walking without a cane. We were able to use my Toyota Prius, which hadn't been pulverized yet.

Pastor Harry was surprised at my entire appearance, and acknowledged the miracle. He believed me, about Coronavirus, and said that I could speak to the church, a few days later, on Sunday.

Meanwhile, I wondered what was going on in the future, with my big appointment with the NYPD, the lawyer and the insurance agent. What an odd way to think -- wondering what's going on in the future! It's like having different time zones in your life, but on a much grander scale.

We went to church on Sunday, and we shocked all of our friends, sharing what would soon be happening in the world. I wasn't late and dragging my feet, as I often was before, but bright, early and full of energy! I warned them all to start wearing masks, washing their hands frequently and avoiding large crowds, starting in late February.

Even with everyone's strong faith in God, I doubt most of my fellow church members would have believed me, were it not for the amazing transformation in my physique. They could see the evidence of God at work, and were thankful for the warning.

I especially warned Tillie, a dear friend who I knew would get Covid-19 in March, and later die from it. It was such a joy to see her alive, because in my original time, she was already gone.

She said, "Lynn, I'm ready, whenever the Lord calls me home!"

"But maybe that's not yet, Tillie. Maybe He's giving you a Hezekiah moment here." (Hezekiah was a King named in the Bible, who learned he was going to die, and asked God to let him live -- in response, God prolonged his life by fifteen years.)

Tillie promised to be careful and take all the recommended precautions, and to warn her family. I prayed they would be safe.

As fate would have it, that January I had a dental appointment scheduled for the following Tuesday, and I kept it. I knew that my dental records would be solid evidence to help me prove my physical renewal, so I got a copy of them. Then I managed to get an interview with someone from the Daily News.

The reporter, Annette Louis, was very interested in my physical transformation. I brought before-and-after photos, including my old dental x-rays showing multiple missing teeth, cavities, root canals and crowns. I flashed her my smile full of pearly whites, tugging hard on my teeth with my fingers to prove that they weren't false, and of course I had a bottle of hand sanitizer ready -- it wasn't yet overpriced and hard to find.

"How do I know they're not implants?" asked Annette.

"Look at the date on the x-rays, it's November 2019," I answered. "Do you think I could have had all these implants done, and healed over, in two months?"

She was less convinced about my time travel story, and not convinced at all about the threat of Covid-19. Still, I got a phone call when the story broke on the news, that the virus had been dubbed "Covid-19." How could I have known that? Annette was flummoxed.

Meanwhile, I had managed to get an interview on a local public access TV channel, on an evening program called "Media Blitz." I got some phone calls and emails, which were encouraging. A few people were paying attention.

At home, Adam was still in shock at my appearance from the future, but delighted with my beautiful new body. He had always appreciated me for who I was, regardless of my outward appearance, and felt I was beautiful at every age and every weight. When I wasn't trying to get media attention, we were out on the streets of our Queens neighborhood or in Manhattan, with posters and a bullhorn, "Look out! Coronavirus is coming!"

We were out in public, wearing our masks to set an example, but also because we didn't want to get sick, like we did the first time around. We were among the few wearing masks, as we proclaimed the danger.

So we were the local kooks, but we knew that we wouldn't be, for long. It was this behavior, with the posters, bullhorns and masks, that finally landed us a spot on the local news network. This was in March, before the pandemic outbreak burst wide open in New York.

When I had fulfilled my mission, I told Adam that I would be transporting back to my original time, in September. News of the pandemic hit the airwaves in a big way, so there was nothing left for me to do. Adam would have my old self back, at least for a time, and would have to explain to her what happened. He should allow her to make that trip to East Island the same way she did on the night in September, when everything changed.

So I closed my eyes, prayed and concentrated. I found myself back in September 2020. It was still about 11 AM; I hadn't lost any time. The NYPD and the others wouldn't be coming for another two hours. Adam was walking into the apartment, and now I would be the one doing the explaining.