I think sometimes that the hardest thing about getting older has been having to slow down. It seemed as though I went through life at a dead run and since I didn't retire until I was nearly 67 the past eight years have been fun in one way and frustrating in another. For so many years there just didn't seem to be enough time to do everything that I wanted to do and now I seem to have far more time than I need. Now I find myself frequently looking for things to fill the hours. Not always, I don't just sit on my butt, staring out the window wondering what to do with myself, but before I didn't have to look for things to keep me busy and now I do. And yet on the other hand I love having the time to do only the things I really want to do.
It has been very interesting -- since I'm new to blogging -- to read about all the things that people get involved in when they retire. My main problem, I think, is the fact that I miss a lot of the things I did for so long -- oh, don't tell me, I miss working??? Yeah, I do. Not everyday, but I do miss the involvement, the pace, the excitement. I was fortunate to have some really great jobs over my working lifetime.
Ah, forgive me. It's late and I'm rambling. Actually, life is good now, just different and I'm reflecting on the differences. I guess, to quote a song, I'm looking for a soft place to fall
Zen thinking
4 days ago
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2 comments:
Sometimes I think it's to my drawback and sometimes my advantage that I didn't work outside the home other than brief stints. I was the proverbial stay-at-home, soccer mom and it taught me a lot about finding things to do without ever feeling bored, which still holds me in good stead, but I think I missed learning about the working world and feel a lack in myself that I was never self-supporting.
Most of what I do involves researching or writing or painting. An idea comes to me and I begin to research it both online and in whatever books I have already acquired on the topic (most of those were acquired before the Internet made research so easy online). Learning about things, using what I learn in books, making art based on feelings (now I do digital painting which doesn't even require any materials, just an old copy of Corel Photo-paint 7. A lot of times one idea evolves into another and the next thing I know I forgot to start dinner. I think being free to learn about whatever I want has been one of my big advantages in having stayed home but there were disadvantages too. Back to what I have always believed-- nobody gets it all.
I love retirement and very seldom do I ever get bored. Sometimes, I wonder how I ever worked because I seem to stay so busy now. I do read a lot and I never had time for that when I was working. My children and grandchild also take up a lot of my time.
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