Sick And Tired of Self-Centered Retirement
I’m sick and tired of these couples who go crazy after retirement. The day
after they leave work for the last time they purchase a $120,000 motor home,
leave their kids and grandkids behind, and take to the road. Others move far
away, buying a home hundreds or thousands of miles from their children and grandchildren.
They don’t know their grandkids and don’t seem to care.
First on their mind is having fun and being free. I think that is tragic. Those
are the years they could be helping with their grandchildren, developing relationships
and demonstrating the importance of family to their own children and grandchildren.
It just seems very self-centered to me.
I hope as baby boomers retire they don’t move thousands of miles from their
families, travel half the year, or spend all their time volunteering so that
they are just as busy or busier than when they worked. Don’t get me wrong. I
know not all retirees leave their families behind.
There are some who are exceptional and put family first. For their retirement
they stayed in the same area as their children. They spent a lot of time getting
to know their grandchildren. One of my favorite memories is my grandmother walking
with me to a local restaurant and buying me an ice cream. It was just the two
of us.
That was over 35 years ago, but I remember it as if it was yesterday. How much
better would the country be if family stayed close to each other? Imagine if
children could ride their bikes a few blocks and visit their grandparents, where
they could sit down to some milk and cookies and listen to stories of when their
grandfather was growing up during the depression, or how their grandmother helped
on the farm as a girl.
That is what retirement is all about: Having the time to spend with family.
If you have any special memories to tell about your grandparents, please leave
a comment about it.
