My retirement was already in its planning stage when I was on my 15th year in service. Had promised myself to retire at 20 years and was pretty sure and decided when it came. I was so determined to do it as I was already drained-out from working, stressed-out of deadlines and pressured to do good work. What I want is to do the things I was not able to do in my younger years or try new things or even discover my hidden talents or skills (if there was any). I knew I will never be bored as I had already a lot of things in my mind when I was planning this. Besides, boredom is only a state of mind. It has no place in mine.
A few things that I had planned to do during my retirement planning stage helped me overcome the fear of this almost dreadful decision of people my age. Some of these things I have already completed and some are still on-going. Here are just a few of them (not necessarily in chronological order):
1. Enjoy life and appreciate it. Be it big, small or simple things in life, I enjoy it. I enjoy waking-up everyday a little later than I used to. I say my morning prayers and always thank God of another beautiful day (be it sunny or rainy). Then I do my simple stretching exercises. Make and eat breakfast with my hubby and sons. Feed the dogs, water the plants or do gardening, and my day is just starting! It's really amazing to see and appreciate God's creations, graces and blessings. The wind, the sun, the flowers, the plants, the pebbles, countless things that give color to our lives. Oh, really, thank God!
2. Do something different every chance you get. Explore. As I was about to embark on my golden years, I felt that I need to do something different. To give me more energy and keep my mind busy, to make a difference and be useful, to appreciate myself and boost confidence. Whatever it is, I'm gonna do something different. Having worked for almost 30 years made me realize that I have been deprived of so many things that I could have enjoyed when I was younger. However, I am not in a hurry here. I take my time, pondering on what to do next. I've got lots of time to do this anyway. I won't do it in haste.
3. Find your passion and do it. Doing what you really like is one thing you would really enjoy. No feelings of resentment, regret, stress and pressure even while doing it 24 hours a day for free. Doing things you're passionate about results to feelings of achievement, satisfaction, and eventually, happiness.
4. Be active, watch your diet and don't forget yourself. Don't forget to exercise, do housework or chores. Cook, wash the dishes, mop the floors, bathe the dogs, go to the grocery, do gardening. These things would really keep you going and would put to use those reserved energies. Don't forget yourself. Exfoliate, cleanse, tone and moisturize your skin. And most of all, eat, live and think healthy.
5. Listen to the music. Music adds color to our lives. It has always been one of my stress-busters. Keeps me relaxed and happy all the time. That's why, whenever possible, I carry with me my portable music player so I can listen to my faves anytime. This may be not be new to you, but, one thing I have learned last year, was to create a You Tube account and saved my favorite music pieces so I can both listen to its audio and see the video of the songs.
6. Explore on technology. I used to be a mediocre "techie" person, who only explored on the Microsoft Office applications such as Word, Excel, Powerpoint and Access for use in my office work. However, I think I have improved through the years. Primarily, because my children are growing-up to be techsavvy and I really need to keep up. Not to mention those young people around me in the office, in our neighborhood and in so many places I go to. Surprisingly, in a matter of one year, I have discovered lots of things in the internet. Funny but, up to now, technology still amazes me.
7. Lastly, be careful. Take extra care when you do physical activities, particularly when already in the middle age. Once you retire, you will be doing a lot of it. Thereby, exposing you to accidents and injuries. One useful tip on this is, try to make your home accident-proof.
I may have left-out a few more tips for self-reinvention after my retirement, but I think I have given you the general view of it.
Till my next blog!!
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Model: Liezl Alcantara
My first basic dress. Not so fancy, made out of basic bodice and basic skirt patterns. Still learning and experimenting on pattern-making and sewing. Will have to master fashion design, pattern-making and sewing in the next months.
