When Linda stepped away from her demanding career in marketing, she thought retirement would feel like coasting downhill after a long climb. But within weeks, she noticed something stirring inside: a sense of space, almost like someone had handed her a blank canvas. For the first time in decades, her days weren’t dictated by deadlines, […]
When Daniel closed the books on his thirty-five-year career in accounting, he expected relief. Instead, he found himself restless. The first few months were filled with golf games, long lunches, and leisurely mornings, but something was missing. “I didn’t realize how much of my identity came from being useful,” he admitted. “I wanted more than […]
When Margaret closed the office door behind her for the last time, she felt two very different emotions. Relief washed over her first no more long commutes, late-night emails, or deadlines hanging over her weekends. But soon after, a quieter, more unsettling thought crept in: What am I now? For forty years, she had been […]
Living With Pain, Not Surrendering to It – how daily choices help me and my wife keep going. The truth about health in retirement is that it’s rarely about one big decision. It’s about the dozens of small choices made every day. Each one shapes the years ahead. I’ve seen this firsthand. My own heart […]
My Wife’s Choice – living with two broken backs and rejecting narcotics. When my rheumatoid arthritis was diagnosed, I was in pain and uncertain about what the future would hold. Thankfully, treatment gave me a way forward. But none of that would have happened if I hadn’t gone to my doctor in the first place. […]
A Wake-Up Call Close to Home – how a heart scare and arthritis diagnosis reframed my retirement priorities. A year ago, I was fortunate that my doctors caught a heart issue early. It was a wake-up call: without health, everything else, retirement dreams, family activities, even day-to-day routines, becomes harder. At the same time, I […]
Today is a time for family, food, and celebrating the autumn harvest. Thanksgiving is generally a time for relaxation to take a long weekend. It is a time to start a more relaxed pace into the fall celebrate the harvest and enjoy the crisp autumn weather. Canada has a complicated history with its indigenous people, […]
Why did the turkey cross the road on Thanksgiving? To prove he wasn’t chicken, eh! What’s a turkey’s favourite dessert? Pumpkin pie-let (pilate). How do Canadians keep their turkeys warm? They give them down jackets! Why did the cranberry turn red? Because it saw the turkey dressing! What sound does a Canadian turkey make? “Gobble, […]
When my cousin retired, he declared, “This is my time to rest.” He lived those words, resting almost exclusively in his chair, watching television. Within a year, he had passed away. I don’t believe his rest killed him, but I do believe the lack of purpose, the absence of curiosity and challenge, took something vital […]
In the last post I talked about my cousin, and some of you thought my cousine might have been depressed. He wasn’t bitter or depressed, just resolute. My cousin believed retirement was his time to rest. He told me, “I’ve worked all my life. Now I deserve to do nothing.” And he lived by it. He […]
