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Above and Beyond

Such a beautiful story about love and tenacity - this woman is the kind of mother any kid would want theirs to be, 

Wolownick first learned to climb to be closer to her son, a world-famous climber and the first person to scale El Capitan without ropes or safety equipment in 2017. 

"He would talk and talk about where he'd gone, what they'd done, who he did it with, and I didn't know what he was talking about, which is not a good way to relate to anybody," she said. 

Sometimes he used so much climbing jargon, she says couldn't even understand what he was saying. So one day, she asked him to take her to a rock climbing gym. 

As we grow older, it gets harder and harder to relate to what occupies the life and minds of our kids. We may not "get" their music, the way they conduct themselves in relationships, the things they prioritize or don't. If they have an esoteric job or hobby that is yet another layer of separation. This woman is an inspiration in how far she could go to better relate to her son. 

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