I Got Vaccinated Because I’m Selfish

And that’s God’s honest truth

Jayson Kristopher Jones
LEVEL
Published in
5 min readNov 12, 2021

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Photo: Kingsley Osei-Abrah/Unsplash

Five minutes of vomiting followed by another seven minutes of groaning in agony. Twelve minutes in total, sitting on my mom’s couch, as she got ready for the day ahead.

When she finally exited the bathroom, it was clear that I startled her.

“Oh, Jay! I didn’t know that you were here.”

She feigned a smile and made her way across the apartment to greet me. Her steps were slow and labored. No doubt her knees, both of which needed to be replaced, were aching. No doubt the fibromyalgia joined in on the fun and made every movement a dreaded task. No doubt this was not, as she termed it, “one of the good days.”

That’s what happens when you live with debilitating health issues. The days of the week are no longer relevant. Rather you classify days as either “good” or “bad.” That was a bad day, yet she smiled.

“You okay? You want something to eat?” My mom’s questions always come in multiples, as if trying to fit as much as she can into every sentence.

“I’m okay. How are you?” I said while moving towards her outstretched arms.

“I’ve been better. Okay, let’s hurry — we’ll get something to eat on the way.”

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Jayson Kristopher Jones
LEVEL
Writer for

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