Some of my "amigos" have asked my why I would choose to "retire" now-- when I am still sharp and healthy and full of energy. I have told them that is a big part of why the time is right to get off the treadmill now-- while I am still able to run around like a college kid and enjoy ALL the aspects of life before I am too old to be able to do it. Being a single guy, I feel like I only have a few years left to explore the world, do things I love to do but never seem to have time to), chase the girls and party like it's 1999 (before I am 99!). The various "self help" books I have read over the years all seem to agree on the same basic advise: You can't go back. Life doesn't allow "do-overs". Don't cry over spilled milk. The Serenity Prayer-- apparently originated by St. Francis of Asissi and featured in every AA, Alanon and ACA meeting throughout the world-- reminds us that we need to learn to ACCEPT the things we cannot change. Unfortunately, the "time machine" I have often imagined has not yet been invented. Therefore we cannot change history. But the Serenity Prayer also tells us we need to have the courage to change the things we can change. We CAN change what we decide to do tomorrow. One of the fortunate things about being born and raised in the USA is that America is -- for the most part -- a free country. Unlike Nazi Germany, the USSR of the past, and numerous other countries throughout the globe and over the millennea, Americans can-- among other things-- freely quit their jobs, divorce their spouses, sell their homes, and move to foreign countries. However, after growing up and living in the USA all these years most of our brains become "hard wired" and we THINK we are locked in. Locked in to the same job. Locked in to a spouse we no longer love and cherish (or who no longer loves and cherishes US). And locked in to the same house, mortgage payment, or location -- even though (like my Minnesota) it might feature virtually neverending winters with temperatures often below zero Fahrenheit and five months of snow cover.
Sometimes a person needs something radical or earth-shattering to emerge from the fog of his or her day to day existence. As Sir Isaac Newton told us several hundred years ago, the physical concept of momentum is hard to overcome. And "emotional inertia" is even harder to defeat. The year 2010 delivered not just ONE but THREE different shock treatments to my brain. After receiving my third shock treatment, it was almost as if my mind and soul opened at the seam to allow me to see three important things with perfect clarity. First, life is too short. If I just keep waiting to change my life, the only thing that will be different is that I will be that much older, weaker and closer to the final act. Second, apparently it is possible that I have NOT necessarily "blown it". It MAY be possible that I can stop working full time to allow me to immediately have more time to do the things I really want to do. More about this later. Third, since I have been fortunate enough to have maintained excellent health and vitality by maintaining my exercise habits since my college days, eating - for the most part- a fairly healthy diet, and staying away from tobacco use and being careful to use alcohol moderately (sorry Chelsea Handler)-- I had the realization that the time to make the move was NOW rather than later. Each one of us has a "chronological age" based on the dates of our birth. But-- according to recent medical literature-- each one of us also has a different "biological age" depending primarily on genetics and lifestyle habits -- including stress, alcohol and tobacco use, and eating habits. I also submit that each one of us also has a different "emotional age" depending on a myriad of different factors. For example, some of us guys suffer from "arrested development" and still think we are in a college fraternity somewhere. Juvenile you say? Maybe so. But if the alternative is to be committed to a life of quiet celibacy, bring me to the Animal House!
You might be curious about those three shock treatments I received last year. The first two are nothing that unusual-- they happen to everyone at some point. But when they happen to YOU the impact can be profound-- if you are listening to your inner voice. Four days into the year 2010 I had the ignominous distinction of turning the age of 60. I had truly become a "man of a certain age". In America, many programs consider you an official "senior citizen" when you hit 60. Many people choose to "retire" at 60, and to start collecting Social Security at 62. Others wait a few more years to make the move, but there is no doubt that your perception of life is suddenly different. You are constantly reminded that you have reached the "twilight zone" of life-- where you still FEEL young and energetic but you are a joke to a lot of people (Ke$ha my dear take note).
My second personal jolt of 2010 was the passing of my amazing father in May at the ripe old age of almost 87. As sad as it was to lose the old man, I was actually happy that he would be spared the agony of spending another year or two unable to walk comfortably, remember if he had breakfast any given day, or get out of bed on his own. He was literally a day or two from having to be spoon fed his meals by my wonderful sister when the Lord called him. But my dad's passing -- just a few short years after he had written his memoirs of being a World War II bomber pilot and shot his age (80) on a legitimate golf course in Florida on several occasions-- was a defining moment for me. My dad had retired at the age of 60 -- and lived the next 20+ years bouncing back and forth with my mom between the sunshine of Florida and the wonderful summers of his native Minnesota. By retiring in good shape at age 60 after working 30+ years as a mechanic with Northwest Airlines in Minneapolis, my father was able to experience 20+ years of having more time to do the things he loved -- like playin golf, fishing, and just putzing around. For me, my dad's death was another reminder that life is just too damn short!
Finally -- the one that most of you NOT have the misfortune, is another matter that I am not able to discuss at the present time for "legal" reasons. I will just leave this one up to your imagination for the time being!
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