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After more than thirty-six years in
the public school system I have retired. The decision did not come easy.
I felt burned-out, tired, and had an insatiable desire to do something
different. I had been a classroom teacher for twenty years, an assistant
principal for sixteen years, and an acting principal for a semester
(which felt like two years). My wife and I have never been extravagant
in our desires and lifestyle, and have saved the celebrated “nest egg”
for retirement. So, why was the decision to retire difficult? The
answers to this question came upon me slowly and are evolving on a daily
basis.
I did not want to admit I was at this stage of my life. My initial
thought was that if you're retired, you're “old”. Isn't that what most
people think? Believe me I did not want to accept this long-suffering
concept. I also did not want to feel like I was “done”. To be more
precise I didn't want to think I was finished doing good and positive
things in my life. Throughout my years working with young people I was
very fortunate to have touched many lives. I know what you’re thinking
as you read this and your are correct... life goes on, you’re only as
old as you think you are, and you will continue to do additional good
and positive things with your life. I know this is true, but as a newly
retired person this is exactly what I was thinking and still do to some
extent. My faith in God is strong and I feel confident in time He will
help me to adjust and become delighted with my new role in life.
There is another conflict that entered my life after retiring and it is
all about money. I would not bring home as much money in retirement as I
did when working. Not only is a teacher's retirement less than an active
teacher’s salary, but retired teachers do not enjoy the pay raises that
working teachers receive. Occasionally the teacher's retirement board
will provide the retirees a cost of living adjustment, but these are not
granted every year as are social security adjustments. In other words,
every year you get a little more behind in the ability of your income to
maintain your standard of living. I knew this going into retirement so I
can't claim it to be a surprise, but the full weight of this fact did
not settle in my mind until after I officially retired.
Allow me a moment to reveal what transpired in my life during the first
thirty days of my retirement. As I mentioned earlier I felt like I had
properly prepared myself financially for retirement. I'm sure you've
heard the term “All Hell Broke Loose”; well... all hell broke loose. My
fireplace began to leak and needed a new cap. The roofer who installed
it for me informed me that my twenty-five year roof was in need of
replacement after only sixteen years. Our central heater broke and the
repairman told me, after several service calls and replacement parts,
that the heater could not be fixed and needed replacement.
I then had a tire on my car go flat that could not be repaired; but that
really didn't matter because the service manager educated me to the fact
that all my tires needed to be replaced at only twenty-one thousand
miles. I asked how this could be with so few miles? It was duly
explained to me that the car I had purchased was equipped with so-called
“high performance” tires and do not last very long. And these were
installed on a sedan? Next my wife, Mimi, showed me her wedding ring,
which naturally was broken.
Looking out the windows of my house one day I noticed that two of my
double paned windows were foggy. Cleaning the outside surfaces didn't
help. I soon came to realize that the seals had failed and they too
would need to be replaced. Of course we all know about the housing
credit crisis facing our nation today with all the implications for a
national recession, depression, and/or inflation. Inflation is not good
for retired people.
I was spending a great part of my day worrying. However, worrying is
like rocking in a chair... it keeps you busy all day, but you get
nowhere. I asked my wife why was all this happening to me at this
particular time? “Gerald, God is testing you,” Mimi said. It was then
that I remembered something I had read: “If you want to make God laugh
tell him your plans.”
Now for the good stuff of retirement. Every day is Saturday, except
Sunday - I go to church on Sunday. I can sleep any time and for as long
as I want to. I work in my woodshop a great deal more than in the past,
and have even taken on some projects for pay. I love to walk for
exercise and now walk at least three miles daily. I’ll discuss the great
things about walking in New Roads in a future article for Town
Favorites. On rainy days I go to the beautiful St. Mary’s Catholic
Church and repair the well-worn kneelers.
One aspect of retirement, that my wife appreciates, is the additional
help I now give in keeping our house clean. I never knew how much work
was involved in the upkeep of a house - it continues to dirty itself.
I've always helped with the vacuuming and mopping, but not with the
dusting. In fact we argued about dusting. I prefer to call it
“de-dusting.” I don't like to dust, but get it done anyway. I’ve come to
accept the ancient saying “Women’s Work Is Never Done”. I never knew
there existed so many different cleaning agents. How many times have I
called Mimi at work to ask “What do I clean this with?”
Then came the day I received my lesson on cleaning toilets. I thought
toilets cleaned themselves every time they got flushed. Mimi explained
that my understanding was off base and brought out all the different
things I would need to do an adequate job of toilet cleaning. I was
amazed when she handed me an “old” toothbrush. “What in God's name is
this for?” I begged. She explained and demonstrated how a toothbrush is
used for cleaning around the hinges of the toilet seat, handed it to me,
and promptly left for her job at the local hospital.
My mind went to thinking about that tooth brush and those hinges. That
afternoon Mimi arrived home after work and began her inspection of my
toilet cleaning skills. Immediately she asked, “Gerald, how did you get
it so clean around the seat hinges?” I told her how I decided the best
thing to do with that old toothbrush was to throw it away. I showed her
the new cleaning agent I drafted to get the job done - a screwdriver. I
promptly explained to my dear wife that I removed the seat from the
toilet and then cleaned the hinge area. How's that for innovation?
Unquestionably, I enjoy my retirement every day. I love spending time
with my five grandchildren watching them grow and mature. Sitting on the
front porch in the afternoon with Mimi and a glass of wine, looking out
at beautiful False River, is a taste of heaven. I try and remember to
thank God every day that I have lived long enough to retire, and to
retire physically and mentally healthy. Life is good. Retirement is
good. |
