Retirement Talk
WHAT to do with the rest of your life? |
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Episode 167 Afraid of Missing Something
You heard about the guy who had an unlimited appetite. He
couldn’t decide what food to start eating first and finally died of starvation.
He was surrounded by food but just could not commit to eating one thing thinking
he might miss out on something that was even better. We probably all fall into
that trap at one time or another. There are just so many choices that we become
constipated.
This is Retirement Talk. I’m Del Lowery.
Perhaps some of us are struck more with this disease than
others. I have many times heard people say that they always knew what they
wanted to do in life or where they wanted to live. I stand in awe of such.
It must be a liberating thing to find one’s bliss and have
it lasting; to know that you want to be a teacher, preacher or cowboy; to know
that you want to be a painter, dancer or writer. One could throw themselves
into learning the trade, skill or gathering the knowledge to perfect the
profession. Days could meld into years and years into a lifetime of single
mindedness or confidence. I have never
had the good fortune to be blessed with such assurance.
Mine has been a disjointed route. I could bore you with the
details of different types of jobs I have had but they range over the field
from pedestrian to professional. The commonality of them all was that they
ceased to interest me over time. I wanted to leave them all. Here is just a
partial list: farmer, factory laborer, swimming pool manager, recreation
director, athletic coach, school teacher, grocery store clerk, labor on a road
crew, Director of a Head Start program, Director of a Seniors Program at a
Community College, gas station attendant(perhaps my favorite), college
instructor, etc.
I’m sure you get the picture. Although I loved some of the
jobs (especially teaching), I never
regretted leaving any of them. I have always wanted to move on: vagabond, a
gypsy, a drifter.
Some of us want to know what is around the bend. We want to
move on. Perhaps it is just a simple case of the grass always being greener;
the longing for that which we don’t have. It might pertain to our geographical
location or our tasks or work at hand. Perhaps it is just a mater of semantics.
We that continually range to new fields are either dilatants or explorers. I’m
not sure there is a difference. But that is where we find our bliss. Therein we
find our straightness of crookedness.
Retirement presents its own set of options. We are no longer
limited by earning an economic livelihood. We are free in a way that we have
perhaps never experienced. Now we are free to become a night person or an early
riser, live in a different state or a different hemisphere. We are free to
plant a garden that requires daily care or to purchase an around the world
ticket. We can live out of a backpack if we so choose. Or we could build our
own house out of stone.
Nietzsche would love it. He loved the idea of changing
ourselves. We can leave our old selves behind and become something other than
what we are. But sometimes I think Becket had it right – we tend to be
satisfied to wait for Godot. And that is sad.
This is Retirement Talk.
A resource from a listener: Best Free Online Degrees for Seniors guide is designed to assist seniors who aspire to enhance their intellect or consider starting a new career path. It features an overview of the top online degrees for seniors, emphasizing their numerous advantages, and a broad range of subjects to choose from.
A friend's website: Terra Firma Designs: Fine Furniture, Stained Glass and woodworking workshops.
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