In past generations, people just got too old to work. Now, retirement has become a part of life’s plan. My husband and our two kids are retired.
I hope to never quit writing. I would walk away from housework today but my husband says he never heard of a housewife retiring. I haven’t thought of myself as a housewife for many years but those tasks remain. He has taken over some chores.
One of the problems of living to an old age is having those retire whom I’ve counted on for their expertise. With computers, their replacements have easy access to my records but that’s not the same as the person-to-person rapport that existed between us.
The extra work brought about by COVID-19 prompted my dentist to retire. I had known him since our daughter, Linda, was referred to him so we had a long relationship. The buyer of his practice sees me for just a few minutes twice a year. Members of his staff do the work I need. We all remain strangers.
The mechanic I trusted to do the service and needed repairs to my car has retired to easier, part-time employment. I hope the replacement hired by the small-town business owner will continue to do the same thorough job.,
Every six weeks, I looked forward to visiting with my hair stylist while she gave me a cut. She reached the age where standing all day wasn’t what she wanted to continue. A younger person in the salon follows the same pattern–it will take a while to develop the conversation.
I still miss the physician that delivered our three children and helped us raise them. It took a while for my current family doctor and me to get used to each other. I hope he lasts as long as I do. Recently, I had an appointment with a specialist who didn’t know me. I felt he was seeing his stereotype of an octogenarian instead of listening to me.
How do you view you retirement and others?