I’d been up since 4 a.m., sitting at my computer with an email ready to rescind my acceptance of a customer-service job at a large department store. It was August 2025, and I was supposed to start that morning. Shame had me hovering over the “send” button. I wondered how it had come to this.
This story is based on an interview with Angela Cheng-Cimini, 56, a veteran HR professional who lives near Baltimore. It has been edited for length and clarity. A few years ago, my husband, Michael, and I started losing friends who were around our age. Three, in particular, died of pancreatic cancer, which was very sudden.
Ever since becoming a mom 12 years ago, most of my work has been freelance. Being self-employed has always been the only way I could work, as my partner has no flexibility in his job, we haven’t had family who could consistently watch the kids, and I couldn’t afford to put my three kids in
