As soon as you retire you can quit setting that alarm clock for those early morning risings – especially on those repulsive Mondays. That is all over now and freedom is at your fingertips – in fact the world is yours to do with it what you want. You can go where you want, when you want, and how you want. The one thing that doesn’t stop is those flipping calendar pages and those spinning clock hands. The time to act is now while you are still in a good mood.
There is an old riddle: What’s black and white and goes round and around? The answer: A penguin in a revolving door. Or, in the case of retirement, it is your free time going around in a revolving door going nowhere if you don’t use it.
As that famous writer, Author Unknown, said, “Invest a few moments in thinking. It will pay good interest.” In other words, to have fun, it must be created, it doesn’t just happen. Fun is what provides you amusement or enjoyment, in other words pleasure, recreation or delight – the opposite of what can happen in retirement – boredom or a drag. “But,” you say, “Thinking is what I did all those working hours. I need a break from that.” Well, change that to planning and it might not seem so bad.
What gets your attention? Activities like bingo, poker, knitting, arts and crafts. Or athletics like walking, running, flag football, golf, bowling, or maybe just buying season tickets for the local teams. Perhaps people – maybe you like being around them, ignoring them, making new friends, enjoying old friends or hobnobbing with strangers at the local senior center. Maybe games like ping-pong, shuffleboard, lawn bowling or joining the Senior Olympics. Traveling – like local, long runs in the car, train, airplane, overseas or just around the block – which brings up the question: warm weather or cold? Maybe fishing, hunting or camping, or all at once, combined with an RV.
Or you could just say, none of the above. I just want to stay home and enjoy the peace and quiet I have missed all these years. There is that garden in the back yard that has been sorely neglected and could be much better, prettier, have more flowers or vegetables, and of course it could be bigger. Or there is the workshop in the garage full of tools and assorted half-finished projects that now can be finished and a few more can be added to the list. And then there is that camera gathering dust on the bookshelf which could be filled with adventures and excursions for memories. And don’t forget that half-written book in the desk drawer/computer that you now have the time to finish.
Ben Franklin said, “Lost time is never found.” But what the heck, now it is found and can
be used to benefit your future happiness. You have a lot of it now and you have earned it. But then on the other side of the coin he also said, “Time is money.” That ugly word “budget” pops into the process of planning enjoyment, and it must be considered so worry doesn’t hinder the final objective. Counting pennies and totaling those columns must be done.
And then there is that universal modern saying, “Just do it!”
Patrick M. Kennedy does full-service editing and writing and has published several books. http://www.abetterword.com/ and http://www.funwithretirement.com/