What Does Modern Day Retirement Look Like?

In my seventies childhood my grandparents seemed very ancient but were actually only a few years older than I am today. They wore frumpy clothes that were entirely different to those of the younger generations of the era. No hotpants for them! One of my nanas had hair that was shampooed and set. and course sported a natty blue rinse. The oldies who lived nearby occasionally popped around to our family home for Sunday lunch. They sometimes pootled around in their garden but this was not their priority. Their main pastime was sitting in their chairs watching the world go by, a stereotypical occupation for retirees of that time.

Typically old folk in those days didn’t live long after they gave up work. Life expectancy was so much shorter then. Seventy five seemed to be a ripe old age. Maybe my observation about how aged my grandparents looked isn’t too far off the mark. They probably hit frailty much earlier.

What Does Retirement Look Like Today?

Very few retirees sit around on their arses anymore waiting for the Grim Reaper. In fact I’m finding it hard to come up with a norm regarding what they do with themselves. There seem to be no hard and fast definitions anymore. What’s more their age range varies considerably. I know quite a few people who gave up the day job in their early fifties. However one friend bucks the trend. She still works in the NHS for three days a week at the age of eighty.

I’ve thought about all the people that I’ve know and what they’re doing now they have given up work. It’s a very mixed picture. Of course there’s a few who are in ill health who do less than they used to. But for the most part people are just as busy as they were in their working lives. It’s just a different type of activity that they’re engaged in.

So here’s a little snapshot of what they do. I’ve divided this into distinct categories but of course it’s not as simple as this. We don’t fit neatly into one compartment. Our patterns of daily life may draw from more than one of these.

What’s interesting is that some of the things that I do fit into each and every category below. Take my allotment gardening for instance. Growing veg to keep our costs down feels a bit like a job in the sense that I am being paid for my work in produce rather than money. But it’s also contributes to my health on so many levels and the social side and playful elements of gardening certainly count as leisure.

‘Proper Work’

One of my grandparent’s lives didn’t look like that of others in his age group. In his sixties my grandad opened a convenience store in a London suburb. After this closed he was full-time carer for my nana until she passed. Then he went back to part time working after she using his free London pass to travel on the Tube and deliver spectacles for an optician. He continued this well into his eighties.

Many more of my peers who have given up work in the twenty first century may want or need to earn money to top up their retirement pot especially if they’ve retired at a younger age. The Sainsbury’s delivery driver who came the other day was a case in point. He told me that he was going to work until he was no longer able to.

A lot of my NHS colleagues used to officially retire and then go back to their old job part time. I toyed with the idea but decided against it. Short lived experience of working reduced hours when I first returned after maternity leave helped me make that decision. I’d probably have been just as stressed.

Some of us demote ourselves,, looking for jobs with less responsibility. Others go self employed or transfer skills to a completely different sector. If I had a part-time job I’d do this. Something like being a library assistant floats my boat. Talking of boats another thing that appeals is working for the local ferry company that take on staff during the summer. Being out on the water day in and day out and getting paid for it sounds perfect.

Other Work

However there’s a lot of us who work for free. And that still counts as being productive. My current caring role means that paid employment is impossible. Luckily I’m entitled to Carer’s Allowance from the government that provides my pocket money. Many of the retired population are volunteers too, working in an unpaid capacity across society in a wealth of roles.

Before undertaking any unpaid role think about the commitment that you are able and willing to make. I suggest that you start small. One of my friends retired and took up five different volunteering roles. ‘I’m so stressed.’ she told me. ‘No shit Sherlock!’ was my response.

Shaping Up

Without pesky work to get in the way there can actually be a bit more time to look after ourselves. I’m going to consider this from the holistic perspective of an ex-occupational therapist. Getting healthy isn’t just about getting our physical body in shape. It’s putting our emotional and spiritual houses in order too.

Then there’s sorting out our environment. Funnily enough I’m going to put all those DIY projects here as well. For if we’re happy with our environment it positively impacts our well-being. It’s hugely important for our health. Decluttering, DIY and re-designing our living space to meet our changing needs as we age can all be life enhancing on many levels. Literally getting our house in order has been a big focus of my own and Paul’s retirement life. In fact we’ve still got a long way to go on this.

Most of my retired friends look after their physical health. There’s exercise of course, the gym, classes and exercising in the open air. Personally I love to run, cycle and walk. We also have time to go for regular check ups without the problems with scheduling that a working day brings.

But there’s also time to more space to concentrate on our emotional and spiritual health. At the beginning of my retirement I invested in counselling but I’ve also focused on enhancing my spiritual life through joining classes and personal study.

The Fun Stuff

I think that this is what most of us hoped for in retirement, doing things that we just didn’t have enough time for when we were working: travelling, pursuing hobbies, catching up with people I’d certainly planned to go away in the motorhome more, spend time developing my crafting skills and whizzing around the country seeing by friends..

Sure I’ve done a bit of that but not as much as I’d envisaged. A sudden change in priorities, caring for my Mum and Dad have knocked some of my plans for a leisurely retirement on the head for a while. Still I feel blessed that I’ve had the opportunity to devote myself to this role without the constraints of a working life.

Into the Future

We’d like to keep fit and active for as long as possible. Don’t we all? My sense is that not many of us feel as old as we look! But I do know circumstances can change and we never know what’s around the corner. Where time, money and opportunity allow we’re frontloading the more adventurous activities, doing these in our early retirement years.

Disclaimer

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