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Doing ‘The Washing Machine’ With My 84-Year-Old Mother
The New York Times
How a ridiculous dance — several, actually — kept us connected through Covid.
When I see my mother on the screen holding her hot-pink, one-pound dumbbells, I start playing “Circle of Life” by the singer she calls “Elton Johns.” We begin with shoulder rolls followed by arm circles, basic side steps and — her favorite — forward punches. She’s wearing my brother’s cycling windbreaker from his college days nearly three decades ago. It was always large but now swallows her like a trash bag. Only a year ago, my stocky, 84-year-old mother could hike with me up steep San Francisco hills. But since the pandemic hit, she has shriveled, become wobbly on her feet, even fallen a few times. Now, on the screen in her billowing chinos, she’s trying to exercise with me, but her moves are sluggish.More Related News