Life Is What Happens

If someone had told me I’d be this busy in retirement, I may have continued working for a few more years.  My retired brother-in-law says that the most frustrating two words he hears are, “He’s retired.”  These words are not so daunting by themselves, but by what usually follows:  “He’s retired, so sure, he can . . .,” and then, just fill in the blank.  He can mail your package, pick up your suit at the cleaners, walk your dog, paint your living room, he can do anything you need him to do, because, of course, this retired person has nothing but time on his hands.

I had great plans for retirement.  I planned to practice my guitar until I got really good.  I planned to learn to play the banjo.  I planned to play some golf and spend some time fishing.  I planned to hike the area’s parks and bicycle on the various bike trails around Pittsburgh.  And mostly, I planned to write.  Writing would be my job.  It was my passion.  Writing is why I decided to retire early.  I would sit down at my desk each morning and start writing.  Maybe I’d begin with an article or letter to the editor to express my opinion on a controversial subject.  Perhaps I could sway public opinion to my way of thinking on that subject.  After that, I’d write some creative piece of fiction – a short story or maybe work on that Great American Novel that I felt I had in me somewhere.

But to quote John Lennon, “Life is what happens to you when you’re busy making other plans.”    And life presented me with a number of volunteer opportunities.  I signed up for another term on the Board of a struggling, nonprofit theatre company and was appointed Chair of a committee that has kept me very busy.  I likewise signed up for another three-year term on a Board that oversees property in our Diocese, and I was promptly appointed President of that Board – an “honor” that I’ve found requires much more time than I anticipated.  I also continued to volunteer at my church in various capacities including as a teacher, lay minister, newsletter editor and sponsor of our acolyte program. Additionally, I agreed to participate in a literacy program at a local school where I read with a 2^nd or 3^rd grader.  I also volunteer at the school where my wife is a teacher, and, most importantly, I help her with correcting tests and occasionally other tasks in her classroom.  It is largely because of her encouragement and support that I was able to retire early, so the little I do to help her is small repayment.

Anyway, sometimes I consider all the volunteer work I do a distraction from my plans to write.  I am three years into retirement, and I haven’t yet published anything for which I’ve gotten paid.  But is money the ultimate barometer of success?  I’ve read several books on writing, and the authors invariably answer “no” to that question.  When I take the time to think about it, I realize that I am writing, if not doing some of the other fun things I planned to do in retirement.  I write 10 feature articles a year for my church’s newsletter.  I started this blog, and this is my 38^th post in less than three years. I’ve put together a draft history of my family vacations that is now over 225 pages long.  And I have written various articles and short stories that have either been published or might be published if I made the effort to submit them to a newspaper, magazine or publishing house.

Each week in one of the prayers at my church we ask God to “send us out to do the work you have given us to do.”  Doing God’s work is a part of the life that has happened to me in the past several years while I was busy making other plans.  So yes, I’m retired.  Let me know if I can do something for you.  It may even lead to a great story.