I've discovered another side effect of growing up. With more responsibility and less playtime also comes the loss of your heroes or, in my case, heroine. She's my grandmother. My abuelita. Now she can't just be the one who gives me hugs and cooks great food while listening to me talk. We've started disagreeing on politics and values. More than once I've been frustrated with her when she doesn't consider my point of view. That never happened before. The unknown of what's to come is not nearly as scary as the certainty that nothing will ever be the same.
Jessica Mahmood
(Photos Rebecca D'angelo For The Washington Post)
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Wheaton
I was an athlete, a competitive volleyball and tennis player. Now I'm facing knee replacements. You can't be an athlete without "wheels." Doctors say to take up different pastimes. But change routines and you might lose contact with friends and lose your life's passions. It's like telling them to stop practicing medicine and paint houses. You can be a writer or a musician well into your old age, but an athlete's identity has a limited shelf life. The expiration date came too soon.
(Rebecca D'Angelo - For The Washington Post)
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Charlene Jehle
Bethesda
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