Chapter 1. Chapter 19

Synopsis

Aaron is 26 and working at an auto parts store after attending college for three years and dropping out. Aaron has been dating Madison, who is 22 and in her last year in art school. Madison is eager to enter the world of commercial art when she graduates, and she has demonstrated a talent for medical illustration.

Aaron believes that he is in love with Madison, and he spends a lot of time thinking about her. What scares Aaron about committing himself to the relationship is that he would have to live with a go-getter driven by a desire to succeed in the art world, whereas he prefers a routine, low-paying, undemanding job that he could almost do in his sleep.

What scares Madison is that Aaron is not the ambitious, career-oriented person that she would like him to be. Madison talked to a college friend about her relationship with Aaron, and her friend pointed out that she and Aaron differ in their views on the meaning of work and suggested that Madison read her psychology textbook’s sections on What Makes Relationships Succeed and Conflict. She also advised Madison to visit the American Psychological Association Web site: www.apa.org(read the article entitled, “Emerging Adults: The In-between Age” by Christopher Munsey).