We stepped into retirement earlier than many of our peers, not suddenly, and not without years of planning, but with the hope of creating a smoother landing in a space to enjoy life a bit more.
Caption: Our Applecross apartment (top left), night view of the back patio at our Pemberton home (top right), a view from the back yard (bottom left), a stream near Pemberton (bottom right).
Some people talk about retirement as if it’s a finish line. One day you’re working, the next you’re not. That isn’t how it unfolded for us. It was more like a long glide to what we hoped would be a nice, smooth landing at some peaceful, warm hearted destination.
To have that smooth landing would take years of planning. No plan is perfect. Life forces some changes and we continue to make adjustments. Momentum shifts, routines evolve, and a new rhythm takes shape. We had great careers, we were both workaholics I guess…but we came to the conclusion that we wanted our retirement to be even more satisfying. So we knew we had to plan early. The difference now is self-directed (or self inflicted) budgets, deadlines, pressure and choices.
What surprises me most is that life hasn’t slowed down. We have more room to seek out experiences, more time to notice the small things, more energy to try new things. There is a kind of richness, a freedom we don’t get from work. The transition from workaholics to worked to live…not live to work. Was hard. But so worth it.
Retirement, as it turns out, isn’t about stepping away. It’s about stepping into a different flow. The challenge—and the gift—is learning how to live in that new space with intention, curiosity, and appreciation.
For me…that learning and fun continues, day by day.
