Andrew S. Thomas

It was the beginning of October, last year. We were on our way back from visiting family in Connecticut, and had decided to make our return journey into a mini-roadtrip through Salem, Massachusetts.

We didn’t spend much time in town - enough to get a sense for the unsettling, bizarre combination of witchcraft and tourist kitsch on display. We did wander a few gift shops, though. In one of the shops, under a sign advertising the “original Salem Kitchen Witch,” a small rectangular mirror caught my eye. Engraved at the bottom of the mirror were the words “You need a fresh start.”

I knelt down and looked at my reflection and the words underneath. I thought of my dread at the hour-long commute and soul-numbing job I’d have to endure the next day. I thought of how tired I was of being overweight and unfit. I thought of the strange desire that compelled me to get up early and use the workout room at the hotel where we’d been staying.

I read the words again and thought, “you have no idea.”

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