Retirement

Carol and Bob are a couple in their late fifties. Bob is a lawyer, a partner in a large firm, still working at least ten hours a day. He has enough investments and savings as well as a pension plan to be able to take early retirement and Carol is urging him to do so. Carol: Bob, it's eight o'clock. Where have you been? Bob: I have a very big case in court tomorrow. I couldn't depend on the younger partners to prepare it. Carol: Isn't it time that you cut down on work? Since I stopped teaching at the high school, I feel like I spend my time waiting for you to come home.

In the first episode, Carol tried to persuade Bob to retire so that they could spend more time together, traveling and visiting the grandchildren. Carol herself is a retired teacher, who finds great satisfaction doing volunteer work with high school dropouts. Bob feels that his life is his work and is afraid to retire. But a year or so later, his brother-in-law dies after having a stroke. And Bob has a slight heart episode. Also, he begins to feel that the younger partners in the law office that he established are trying to keep him behind the scenes, fearful that an older partner might give their law firm a has-been image.

Retirement can be compared to one long vacation. It can be a vacation with a longtime partner. It can become a time of renewal as the couple has time to break out of old routines, try new things, and see the "other" in new ways. It can be a vacation with a new partner, testing the reality of first impressions, discovering hidden riches. It might also demand adjusting to unexpected angles of personality. During retirement, as on vacation, couples float on a cloud of time.

Retirement is a complex issue that affects the individual as well as the family. For many of us, work is a major part of our self definition. Who is Bob if he is not a lawyer? Is he proud of being a husband, a father? He has probably invested more time in thinking about succeeding as a lawyer than in thinking about the kind of husband he wants to be. In addition to supporting our sense of self, work also occupies a major portion of our time. What would Bob do if he retired? Would he begin to experience loneliness, or ask himself some difficult questions which do not have easy answers, such as: What is the purpose of life in general, of my life in particular? What is really important to me? He might have to face problems in his relationship with his wife.

Are you about to retire or are you considering retirement in the near future? This article provides suggestions, advice to all those people who face or will soon be facing retirement, so you can enjoy your retirement as much as possible. But we want to hear your comments and suggestions. How do you think retirement can be enhanced? Please send us your ideas and comments on retirement. Let's start with an initial look at retirement. A person might retire with wealth or limited means. Retirement might be premature, when a business closes, or retirement might entail a move to a foreign country. The retiree might or might not have academic or special interests, hobbies, a family framework, children and grandchildren.