An Unexpected Surprise

It is a Sunday afternoon around one o’clock. I notice that the gym is empty compared to what I am use to seeing. I see older people here more than I usually do every other day of the week. Everyone here is working hard and actually working out, which never really happens when the gym has more people in it.

            When I first walk in I instantly notice an older man who is about in his 50’s with a younger man who looks like he is a teenager. I notice these two because of the amount of hard work being put in by both of the men. I start off by watching them from a distance and notice them work hard for a good amount of time and then taking small breaks. At this point I can’t exactly hear the conversations between the men but I notice that the older man always starts his workouts first. So I decide to get closer to the pair and workout right next to them. I don’t have my earphones in, so I can hear exactly what is going on between them. What happened next not only completely made my day, but it made me more motivated as well.

            We are all three sharing this space in the gym that has mats on the floor do to workouts without any equipment. This is a smaller space so when I first walk up to the men I, of course, asked if I may use one of the mats. The older man responds “of course young lady!” So as I am working out I am now listening to their conversation. It turns out that the older man is the teenager’s grandfather. The grandfather kept talking about his “golden days” as a trainer with his grandson. I also learn that the grandson is at the gym working out because he wanted to get in shape by the time his senior prom came around for a girl he has been crushing on. When I heard that I just couldn’t resist myself. I HAD to say something to these two adorable people. So I simply say “you two are doing great! Keep up the good work!” and the old man responds to me and says “Oh young lady thank you! You are working pretty hard over there yourself, would you like to join us?” So eager to learn even more about these two I say yes. While working out when them I learned their names, professions, and a little further information about their motivation for being at the gym. That elder man did not take the workout easily on me like I thought he would. By the time we all were done with the workout we were all dripping in sweat knowing we had a great workout. As the two learned more about me, and my motivation for going to the gym, they started encouraging me any chance they got.

It was amazing to see these strangers not only welcome me with open arms but also be so motivated to have their goals get done. Usually when I am at the gym I never meet or talk to the strangers there. But this time was different. This made me feel such a rush of happiness after I left the gym. I will make sure to go to the gym around the same time every Sunday now!