I have been retired for five years now and I still don't have a good answer for those people I meet who ask me what do I do with my days. Retirement is a strange state. A lot of people dream of it and plan for it but really don't give it much thought as to what they will do when they are actually there. To some it is terrifying and they shun the idea entirely. Retirement can be confused with growing old so I can understand why people are afraid of it. The two states should be thought of as different. Growing old is a condition of the body. Retirement is something you have earned. The latter doesn't mean you stop doing anything but working at what you did before you retired.
I am lucky. I got to retire when I was 50. My former employer was willing to give me a generous pension and I realized I had been working non-stop for someone else since I was 16 years old and had enough of it. I decided it was time to start doing things I wanted to do. Even so, when I say this to those curious souls who want to know what I do all day, it doesn't seem to satisfy them. I have concluded they don't really want to know what I do all day, they are more concerned with their notion of retirement and want to know if I have the answer. I guess I don't have their answer, only my own.
Retirement is a wonderful thing. Embrace it, cherish it and don't be afraid.
This blog is just my ramblings but I hope to include more about early retirement or just retirement in general and I would love to hear from others about their thoughts. Thank you for reading.
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