How I’m making my retirement the best years of my life

Retirement living can be regarded as the rest of our lives. But what are we all retiring to? This depends on funds and health. Anyone can develop a health condition and be struggling stat! Some might have a significant other, and wind up single. It is up to the lady greys if they seek a king in their senior years.

Limited funds do not mean retirees cannot have the best of their lives. Some seniors are battling, but others earned their superannuation. They plan to say, “Hi, ho, Hi, ho, it’s off on holidays we go!” They set off to explore scenic regions of Australia, enjoy wineries, do a grand tour of Europe or Asia, or even photo safaris of the Serengeti, sailing home on a cruise.

I have known less adventurous greys who travelled in their city. My mother and stepfather did this for a while too. After checking the weather forecast, on a selected day, they would arise. Then with packed lunches and a thermos, they caught the train from the local station to the city. They would walk to any platform, and take the next train to any end of a line. It was off-peak travel. They explored different libraries, churches, craft stores, gardens, and antique stores. 

After doing the return journey, they enjoyed a fun day on the railway lines. It was a cost-effective day trippers’ hi-ho holiday, a change from the routine. Some other senior couples of my acquaintance still do this too. 

There is nothing wrong with any kind of hobby you might want at our age. We can enjoy the fun best days of our lives while we can.

On the flip side, when my beloved late father retired, he never wanted to travel by train again. He had commuted by rail to the city all the years of his working life. He was a devoted family man, the breadwinner. He never wished to travel anywhere, as he had sailed to New Guinea in 1939. Enough said. 

The best days in my father’s retirement were spent gardening, and being my mother’s companion. He liked tinkering in his man cave in his shed and reading library books. My sisters and I are older lady greys now. We still like reading library books and trying new authors. Nothing wrong with reading in retirement, book lovers agree. We have more time to read more books in the best times of our lives. 

In our retirement years, we can learn new skills. I did some online courses in languages, mastering several overseas lingos. It was a daily challenge but kept me engaged in free learning. In my community groups, I met some interesting people who crossed my path.

They belong to the New Age movement of beliefs. So I studied their type of energy healing online too, mastering Level Two, and received a certificate. I do not practise such healing but do keep an open mind about different beliefs. 

 I learned long ago how to delete negative energy and put it in the trash. Not so bad. The online world is great for keeping the brain engaged and alert, with courses, interest groups, and staying in touch. Once again, there is nothing wrong with that, in these best of our years.

Some people do seek to volunteer in the community, to build bridges. One man I know is a voluntary dog walker for an overflowing pet shelter. Fur pals are being surrendered to refugees. Some unfortunate folk have to choose between feeding themselves or their pets.

So, difficult decisions have to be made. If retired people are fit enough, they can volunteer at cat or dog shelters, to socialize fur friends, feed, groom and exercise them. Win, win, situation. 

So, what did you retire to? Some folk I know are enjoying babysitting their grandchildren. To them, that is the best of times, making quality happy memories. Lots of photos, sharing simple pleasures, happy smiles. To them, this can be the highlight of the rest of their lives.

There are no wrong choices in retirement, but it’s good to be optimistic and make realistic and achievable plans. Retirement years! Let’s all make this time the best of our lives!