The golden years

This column is the first in a new series I am writing for the paper. Before the election, I had mentioned to the editor John that no matter the outcome, after three years of writing about politics, I was ready to change the subject. Considering the dismal results for my party, I’m glad I did.

As I rank among the elderly, I suggested writing about aging since I know quite a bit about it. John granted approval, so here goes.

Those who study aging have long referred to years 65 to 80 as the “golden years.” It’s usually around 65 that many of us retire from work, enjoy more leisure activities and have more freedom to set our own schedules.

If we’ve reached the age required for retirement income, we may no longer need to work. Sometimes, though, it’s hard to adjust to having so much free time. Sometimes it’s unsettling to actually see the last of a paycheck.

It may explain the millions of older workers filling part-time jobs. I was one of them. After retiring from Southwestern Community College several years ago, I became a part-time reporter for the News Advertiser. Working can be a hard habit to break.

The period encompassing our golden years is the age where our experiences in life have presumably made us wiser. This is the age when we’ve surely learned which things are important, which are not and which people we enjoy having in our lives and which ones we’d rather do without.

The most important thing we should have learned by now is not to wait until 65 to live meaningful lives. When we are younger and healthier, there may be a tendency to simply go through the motions, always thinking about how life will be better tomorrow. We forget that events can change the direction of our lives overnight. We never remember to live every day as though it could be our last. We neglect dreams and goals that could make every day more meaningful.

Perhaps, with retirement in mind, we’ve simply been putting in our time, trying to reach a certain age or a certain event. Even if work has become completely unsatisfying, we are often afraid to explore new possibilities. Unfortunately, we’re probably making ourselves and our co-workers miserable. The point is, we might do ourselves and everyone else a big favor if we moved on.

A person may be fit and healthy at 65 and able to enjoy traveling and recreational activities. They may wish to continue working at jobs they love or, perhaps, they are interested in pursuing a whole new occupation or career. The idea of having choices is comforting. The problem is life can throw us a curveball at any time.

Health issues are often that curveball. Just when things are going well, our lives can change on a dime with a devastating diagnosis. All of a sudden, that day we’re been looking forward to is here. But it’s not because we retired; it’s because we are ill.

Suddenly, we can go from being independent and looking forward to the future, to a condition of disability and dependence, perhaps for the rest of our lives.

Although we cannot live our lives fearing every day calamity could happen to us, it does reinforce the concept of living for today, rather than tomorrow. If we find ourselves in a lifestyle or a career that makes us miserable, it’s time for reflection. We may decide it’s time to make a change.

There are always twists and turns in life, but it’s often when we reach our 80s that it really changes. It’s actually quite astonishing to recognize one day that we have become old. We may have joked about “getting old” when we hit our 60s and our knee joints needed replacing. We laughed at our “senior moments” when we couldn’t remember someone’s name.

But we were, in fact, quite healthy and still taking long walks, perhaps still playing golf, still very active. We could still open jars and lift a grandchild and clean our own house. And we weren’t afraid to drive in the city. It was fun to admit to our frailties - when it didn’t matter much.

It’s when we reach our 80s and actually dealing with the frailties of aging, that it matters a lot.