I've never aspired to be Wonder Woman. I have aspired to be Dona Wilson. Those who know her will understand the similarities right away.
As a girl, Dona dreamed of being an actress and moving to Hollywood from Washington state. Unfortunately, life got in the way and she found herself responsible for providing for her mother and younger sister. She got a job at the local sheriff's office, and thus began her career in law enforcement.
Dona did eventually move to California. Not to Hollywood as she'd once dreamed, but to Northern California. She became an officer with the Berkeley police department. Today, it is not common to find a woman police officer; then it was almost unheard of. After 25 years with the Berkeley police department, it was time to "retire". Dona's idea of retirement was to take a job with BART as a security officer. When it was time to "retire" again, Dona became a paralegal at a major law firm in San Francisco. While there, she got her pilot's license. She spent as much time as possible flying a plane, and when she wasn't flying one, she was a passenger in one on her way to some far-off land. While travelling the world, Dona became an amatuer photographer. You can see some of her photos here.
When a serious eye condition grounded her, Dona continued travelling and taking pictures and entering photo contests and exhibits. It took a bad fall at the age of 76 down a flight of stairs in Italy to slow her down at all. She was down, but not out. As she has done many times in her life, she reinvents herself. In an e-mail I received today, she "has a sassy straw hat and some cute new shoes, so I'll go to a movie or something".
My superhero.
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