Retirement

Retirement is a ten-letter word.  I bet some of you have not given it much thought, and for others, it is all you think about.  Over the years, there were times I thought about retirement and I think it is interesting how I have changed my mind about it through various stages of life. 

Dreaming of retirement may first start in your twenties or thirties.  Responsibilities may begin for you with the start of your first job, purchase of your first house, birth of your first child…and maybe your first meeting with a financial advisor who tells you to plan for the future, even though it seems very far off.  You may plan big.  I did.  My husband and I love Sedona and we decided it was where we wanted to retire, when the time came.  We visited many states and lived on both coasts, understanding the climate pros and cons of both.  Sedona was a far off, scenic, cultural, wonderful place to live during retirement.  The climate is dry and there is only a sprinkling of snow in the winter; not enough to need shoveling.  The fact that it was expensive to live in Sedona didn’t matter.  We were young and had our whole lives ahead of us to figure out how we would get there. 

Now go forward a decade or so into your forties.  You start to get involved in your community, making new friends, volunteering, getting involved in the town to make it a better place.  You know shop owners, have doctors you love, and know where all the best restaurants are.  Your children have their childhood friends here.  Your new friends are now some of your best and dearest friends.  So one day when someone asks you where you are going to retire, you are a little taken back.  ‘Why do I have to leave here?’ you think.  ‘Everyone doesn’t have to GO somewhere else to live in their old age.  Why can’t I stay here where I have friends and know everyone?  I like it here.  I worked hard for this.’

Certainly you don’t have to retire to another town, state, or country.  You can stay right where you are.  But let’s fast forward next to your fifties…

Perhaps your children are now in college, finished college, or even starting families of their own.  Maybe you have experienced the feeling of the empty nest.  Maybe you miss your kids.  Maybe you want to see where they settle down and plan to be somewhere ‘not too far’ from them.  It doesn’t matter so much anymore if you stay in the community where you know everyone and finally have your house exactly how you want it.  Nor does it matter that you live in that fabulous town of Sedona with breathtaking views.  What matters is being near your kids and hopefully one day your grandkids. 

Of course, there are no guarantees.  You can plan your life and your retirement location around where your kids have settled, only to find that they have to move due to a job transfer or for a change that they want to make.  So what do you do now?  You can’t keep following them around the country.  There are no long-term guarantees.

What is the answer?  Do you move or do you stay put?  I don’t know.  I have gone through all these feelings and am currently still in my fifties. We have thought through lots of possibilities.  Luckily, we have time to sort it out.

I would love to hear your thoughts about where you decided to spend your retirement, why, and if there are any regrets or things you wished you knew.  Likewise, I would love to hear your thoughts about where you think you will be for your retirement years and why.  It is a big decision for all of us, kids or no kids.  Lots of stories and experiences are welcome for us all to share.