“The world doesn’t respond to me like it used to. Throughout my...

“The world doesn’t respond to me like it used to. Throughout my life I had learned to anticipate a certain pattern of focus and friendliness. And I never realized how much of that was based on my youth and physical appearance. I thought it was because of my energy and personality. But I’ve had to accept that a woman becomes less and less visible as she ages. It begins to fade in your 40’s, and drops off in your 50’s. You have a harder time holding people’s attention. The conversations become less about you, and more about the transaction. It used to really bother me. I would feel abandoned or ignored. But I’ve grown out of it. There’s a certain grace to letting go of the need for attention. I was an actor for most of my life. I was all about getting attention. But now I’m working as a sign language interpreter, which I love. Because it isn’t about me at all.”