With teachers for parents, Jennifer Grey was destined for academics. Even from an early age Jenn would gather all of her teddy bears together and teach them how to count to ten. While her sister was busy making friends and playing sport, little Jenn Grey had her nose inside of a book. She loved to read, learn and imagine. She loved the elaborate stories of the greats like Austen, Salinger, Vonnegut, Tolstoy, Bradbury. Her parents rarely said “no” to a book request. Any other parent would have been concerned about their young child reading such advanced and sometimes inappropriate material. The Greys were different. They didn’t believe in censorship or banning, or anything else that limited the growth of the mind. They wanted their daughter to form her own opinions, make her own decisions, and follow her imagination to the ends of the world.
Jenn had one very special friend that shared her love for adventure, love, danger, excitement and page-turning action. Little Annie Reynolds lived across the street from the Grey family. She, too, have an older sister that was much more interested in social bonds than literary ones. Annie and Jenn would spend hours reading together under the big Oak Tree in the Grey’s front yard. When their eyes would feel strained from reading, they would act out their favorite scenes from their favorite stories. Running, jumping, climbing, singing, it was all a part of their game. The Greys never worried that Jenn would turn out anti-social or disconnected from the world. Jenn knew, even at the age of ten, that those stories weren’t real.. most of the time. She knew that there was a whole big world outside of the pages of her books that ready for Annie and her to explore. Reading was filling her mind with thoughts, ideas and big words to impress people with.
What seemed like a normal Sunday afternoon quickly changed the lives of both families. While the girls were playing in the yard, a car came speeding through the neighborhood. It all happened so fast, to this day Jenn still can’t remember the details. One minute they were laughing and playing, the next there was a loud boom… then a scream… then screeching tires. Annie was on the ground, motionless, pale, bloody. The last thing Jenn remembered was being pulled off of her dead friend, covered in her blood. Many years later, her mother told her that she held her friend as she slowly fell into darkness, never letting go until she was already gone. That moment changed everything for little Jenn. She fell in to a deep depression, ripping pages from her books and throwing them out into to the hallway. She vowed never to read another story again. She didn’t want to play those games anymore. She didn’t want to be reminded of the only friend she ever loved.
It was in the following months that her parents decided New York could no longer be their home. Their daughter was crumbling from the painful reminders everywhere she looked. The depression was taking a toll not only Jenn but also her sister Sara, who felt hopeless to help her sister. Jenn would spend days in her room without a sound. She didn’t want to talk, or read, or listen. She just wanted to be left alone. Her parents knew that they needed to get their daughter out of this house and away from the pain. Her father had been a Chemistry professor at NYU who could have taught anywhere he wanted with his talent and knowledge. Her mother, equally as brilliant, taught advanced high school mathematics. As much as they loved their current jobs, their children’s health and wellbeing was their top priority. After weeks of interviews and calling in favors, her father received word that he had been invited to teach at M.I.T. in Massachusetts. It was an unbelievable opportunity that the family could not say no to. So they packed their things, said their goodbyes, and left the painful past behind.
Getting Jenn out of her shell again was a difficult tasks. Thankfully her sister stepped up the plate to help. She practically forced her sister out of her room every day to explore. They would spends hours walking around the neighbor, around the city, around the park. Sometimes they talked, sometimes they said nothing. Sara left it up to her sister as to what she wanted to do, as long as they were outside. Sara was determined to stay by Jenn’s side until she could smile again. When Jenn did finally smile, it was a weight lifted from her shoulders. Her sister convinced her that Annie would not have wanted this life for her. She would not have wanted her shutting herself off from the big world they had dreamed of as little girls. Jenn was ready to take a deep breath, pick up a book and read again. Jenn knew that she couldn’t hide behind her books forever. She was ready to step out into the world and start building a future. She wanted to make friends, go to sleepovers, talk about boys and whatever else was out there for her. She wanted to do more than just read; She wanted to live.
As time went on, Jenn was able to let go of the past and build herself a happy future. She became friendlier, outgoing, adventurous while still maintain her love her books. She became the girl that everyone in school liked. She was smart, pretty, and rarely ever seen without a big smile on her face. She was happy, plain and simple. As high school came to an end and college was looming, she had a decision to make. What did she want to do with her life? She was smart enough to do just about anything. She could have been a doctor, or a lawyer, or even an astronaut. But, it was always obvious to her that her love for teaching was her future. As tacky as it sounded, she still wanted to “shape young minds”. With an early acceptance to Northwestern under her belt, she choose to study Secondary Teaching for her undergraduate degree. Post-graduation, she earned her Masters of Science in Education with an emphasis in Elementary Teaching. College was, by far, the best experience of her life. She was ready to spread her wings and enjoy the big world she had dreamed about as a kid.
College was the perfect platform for her to start trying new things and living life to the fullest. She joined Chi Omega sorority to meet new people, joined various clubs within the Education Department, and even played intermural volleyball just for the hell of it. College was everything she had dreamed for and more. It was also the place where she fell in love. Insert Sam Sommers. He shared her same love and interest in teaching. It wasn’t long before “those three words” came in to the picture. She had never felt this before. Yes, she had loved teaching and learning, but nothing to this degree. It was the all-consuming, life changing, joy filling emotion that she had been waiting for her entire life. It was just like the love stories from her favorite novels. It was in that moment that she knew that she wanted to spend the rest of her life with this person.
Shortly after graduation Sam made the decision to enlist and follow in the footsteps of his military father. Jenn supported him 100% and was proud of the man he wanted to become. Right before he went overseas he got down on one knee and asked for her hand in marriage. She said yes before he could even finish the proposal. This was everything she had wished for as a child: Love and Happiness. Once he was gone though, the real struggle began. Deployment was tough on the young couple. After he left, she decide to pursue her Masters like she has always planned. She still spent every waking moment worrying about him, and praying he would come home soon. They spoke on the phone and wrote to each other at every opportunity. When he was home on leave they spent every waking moment together. But the distance was too much for them to handle. Even with the amount of love they felt, the pain was consuming what they had. After four years together, they came to the decision together to call of their engagement and split. It was devastating for Jenn. She could feel herself slipping back in to that depression that nearly consumed her life all those years ago. She couldn’t, she wouldn’t. She threw herself into school and was determined to finish her Masters and become a teacher. As much as it hurt, she had to keep living her life and move on. But to do that, she needed to make some big changes. She moved in to a new apartment, put on a brave face and even changed her hair color. She was not going to let this ruin everything she had worked for. She was going to be okay, she kept telling herself. All she needed to do was take a deep breath and keep pushing forward.
Flash forward to the present day. Now living happily in Boston, Jenn is a second grade teacher (affectionately called “Miss Jenn” by her students). She wouldn’t change anything in the world for where she is now. She’s very much still an adventurer (mostly thanks to her New Year’s resolution to stop saying NO to new ideas). She has a small two bedroom apartment in the city that she shares with her cat, Dolly Parton. Her parents have since retired from teaching and now live just outside of the city. Her sister is now married with a little girl and a second on the way. Jenn considers herself a very protective person. Much like her sister, she has an instinct to protect the friends and family around her. She is very loving and caring toward her friends, though finding her “soulmate” is completely off the table at this point. She loves to joke and have fun, and is sometimes caught in a prank war with her friends and neighbors. Most of all, she’s a mama bird, always there as a shoulder to cry on or for an ear to listen.
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