The Tragedy of Losing Yourself

     The moment after I told my friend Jan to smile for the camera, I showed her the photo.     
     “Who’s that?” she asked.     
     “It’s you,” I said.     
     “Really?”     
     Jan didn’t know who she was anymore. I pointed to a photo on her wall. “That’s where you taught school in the Philippines.”     
     “Me?”     
     “Then when you returned you volunteered as a hospice chaplain.”     
     “You sure?”     
     I’m sure. I’ve known Jan for years, always observing her gentle wa...