Introducing...Tennis Hag

I'm reclaiming old womanhood.

Hey Story Lovers,

A year and a half ago, I entered my first tennis tournament on the senior tour, which caters to players all over the world and into their 90s. I’m in the 55 and overs and I have to tell you, this ain’t your grandma’s tennis league. Or maybe this is exactly grandma’s tennis league. The competition is fierce.

I’ve played nine tournaments so far. I’ve won prize money (I’m a pro!) and I am now ranked #1 in Florida (my best ranking ever!). While I wouldn’t call tournaments fun exactly—a tennis match is physically and mentally grueling—and I’ve lost some matches I thought I could win (I’m a mental case!) competing is giving me something I didn’t know I needed.

I grew up playing tennis. I played softball and ran cross-country too, but tennis got me into the University of Pennsylvania. Now, 36 years after graduating, and after a 25-year break from tennis, I’m back on the court and loving it learning a lot.

One thing I’m learning is tennis lessons are writing lessons are life lessons. Lesson one: You have to hit a lot of balls.

A man would never say this, but in 1986, the Penn tennis team was just bad enough to want me. I say this because it’s true and because I’ve also learned that years of hard work can bring some very good luck.

I quit tennis after college because it didn’t feel good to play when I was out of shape or out of practice. I wasn’t what I was. Then ten years ago, Allison Langer, cofounder of Writing Class Radio, suggested tennis. Allison didn’t play in college and ex-college tennis players are total snobs, so I said no. But then I softened to the idea and soon we were holding work meetings from across the net. Tennis was fun again. Or actually, tennis was fun for the first time.

As a kid, I didn’t appreciate how lucky I was to be out there running around. I didn’t know I would have been a stress mess in the rest of my life if I didn’t exert myself on the court. I didn’t notice how good it felt to hit the ball just right. But now…the slide, the swing, and the feel of the ball off the strings feels a little bit like dancing.

Join me on Facebook and Instagram where I’ll be talking about the high lobs and low slices of tennis and of course, writing.

Love,

Andrea Askowitz

Illustration by Anne Boston