One of the things that helped me get through the wierd, surreal, challenging days of 2020 was my discovery of a British television show called Escape to the Country.

Similar to House Hunters on HGTV, it features folks looking to exchange their current digs (usually in the bigger cities) for greener pastures in rural locales across Britain, Northern Ireland, and the rest of the UK.

Those looking for new residences are all ages and configurations. Some are families looking to find larger plots of land for their children and fur babies. Some are middle-agers seeking to bring multiple generations under one roof. Still others are repatriating to England after having lived in other parts of the world, some for decades.

The majority of the home searchers are couples usually ranging in age from their mid-50’s and beyond. Some are downsizing, while others are buying larger homes to accommodate visiting grandchildren. Still others want to realize dreams of part-time businesses, revisit deferred dreams of hiking and biking their days away, or rediscovering the joys of artistic endeavors such as painting, baking, or community theatre. I began to notice that most of these people weren’t interested in the traditional notion of downsizing. Nor were they looking to consolidate their homes and possessions to conserve resources for fear of running out of funds before running out of life. In fact, very few referred to retirement as many do.
When the word retirement is mentioned, images of lazing your days away after having worked 40+ years of life come to most people’s minds. Retirees travel, maybe go to Vegas and gamble a bit, or take extended visits to see the grandchildren. There’s endless television watching. There’s the option to camp out at the at the local watering hole. One can volunteer, or get more involved in church activities. However, when thinking about the guests of this show, I realized they weren’t treating their house-hunting moves as preludes to more sedentary lifestyles, but like transitions into the next great adventure of their lives. While it seems most Americans seem to think of retirement as a time of winding down, most of the people in this show are shifting into 5th or 6th gear.

This has little to do with money. The range of available budgets run from below the national average into millions of available pounds.

I know that a reality show is not a barometer of the ideas and habits of a general population, but I can’t help but think there might be some foundational differences in how Europeans and Americans view retirement (as we think of it), which in itself is a recent, and predominantly Western phenomenon. It feels like for a lot of people here in the States, when we reach retirement, we walk away from life.

Incidentally, I also officially crossed the threshold of my 6th decade of life. And I noticed that thoughts of retirement and of not having enough have been haunting me. I questioned the more consistent thoughts of just coasting to retirement, rather than dusting off some of the dreams I didn’t think I wanted anymore, and putting plans into action to start them again. In fact, I wasn’t sure of what I wanted anymore. The goals and dreams I had even just a few years ago no longer excited and inspired me. I’ve questioned so many things; my lack of ‘get up and go’, my preference for the comfort of my couch instead of workouts. and my increased appetite for cookies, cakes and ‘bad’ carbs of all kinds instead of fruits and vegetables. I wondered what happened to the woman who preferred reading to binge watching home decor shows. And then, with all the weirdness of the pandemic and spending inordinate amounts of time at home, I honestly questioned ‘Why bother? What’s the point of it all?”

Watching Escape to the Country reminded me that I have so much more to live for, and that I too, should I choose, can shift into a higher gear. That continually mulling over so-called past mistakes is is an incredible waste of time. Besides, the gift is that I made every choice consciously. I followed my dreams, and they mostly came true. Even though I never got the coveted full-time tenured teaching position that I wanted, I did have the full-time teaching experience, and I loved it.

I’ve also researched other sesigenerians, septuagenarians, and octogenarians. I’ve watched a lot of NHK World from Japan, where people well into their 90’s fish, farm, grow their own vegetables, open and run small businesses. And I’m thinking, why am I sitting on my ass? What the heck is wrong with me? It’s been quite the kick.

So, I’ve kicked the word ‘retirement’ out of my vocabulary. I will work until I can’t. Or don’t want to. Or until I feel I have nothing left to do. Truth is, I don’t see how I can retire, but that isn’t the full reason for my change of heart. I don’t want to just live, I want to feel alive! I want to squeeze the most out of this life. I don’t want to leave the planet without finishing what I’ve started. I could live five lifetimes working to accomplish some things I’ve always wanted to do, but now the focus is on completing what I’ve already started.

I am not under any illusion that this will be easy. And I am closer to the grave than to the cradle. But I’m more motivated than I’ve been in years, and no matter how this all turns out, the one thing I resolve to do is to have fun!

When I take my last breath, I want to be at peace with what I’ve done. I hope to have fulfilled my sacred contract.

What about you? Have you ‘retired early’ from your life? Have you let your age, being tired, your physical condition, or any other reason (excuse) keep you from living the life you deserve? As long as you’re breathing, you’ve got a chance.

Get to it!