Thursday, April 24, 2008

Retired

Many years ago as a young mother living in a largely retirement aged community, I remember when a new couple moved into the Ward. He said that they were retired from their jobs--not from life, so please put them to work right away. And so it was done.

In my current ward, it is a standing joke about how many are in "the waiting room" for death, and after three [or was it four?] funerals within just a couple weeks, my then bishop declared a moratorium on dying until pageant was over that year. It must've worked, for while we've had any number of others enter "the waiting room" the first death was quite recently.

As a young "retired" [due to disability] I cannot understand what others have meant by retired, but have come up with my own definition after observation and participation. To be "retired" meant that you are tire again and again because of all there is to do.

In my own case, I volunteer for only a couple of things at the high school--working on the Madrigal, the spring play and working with the genealogy unit in sociology every semester.
At church: Sunday school teacher [currently Gospel Docrine/adult class] choir--including the Stage manager / scene designer / design executer for our May Patriotic Program. Book Club is held monthly in my home.

I tutor two home schooled kids in English daily.

I work at the Family History Center 2nd & 4th Tues and sometimes 5th Tues, and sometimes go in with an individual appointment[like last Mon afternoon--2 1/2 hrs] I work on my own genealogy and serve as a ward family history consultant. I try to do at least one page of indexing, daily.

I garden /can etc. I also flower garden. I often volunteer at the Bishop's Storehouse. Occasionally, I have the pleasure to babysit for a family with baby/ and or young children.

I continue to work on Pageant to get things in readiness for next year.

I'm a Visiting Teacher. Our book club has been asked to prresent a skit for the upcoming Stake Enrichment

I'm a community volunteer [tho am pulling back with the upcoming move]

Yep. I'm tired, and retired on a daily basis...but I wouldn't have it any other way.

Because of my mdedical history, I qualify as one in the waiting room, but I figure on being around for quite some time to com...just tired and daily retired!

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I love how you keep so busy and do so much. When my Dad retired he basically said - "Now I get to do all the stuff I really WANT to do" - they are on their second mission, planning on their third. I think a lot of people are busier after 'reitrement' because they get to do all things they wanted to do but never had the time. :-)

Allrie said...

Amen and Amen!

By the by, I need your help/advice on something. Can you e-mail me? I don't know how this works to keep such info off the public posting. I imagine my oldest knows, so I will ask her if she knows how I may contact you...this is by way of warning, I guess. :)