THREE STEPS

There are three things you need to learn to do when you retire. First, get ready. Second retire. Third, get used to living your new life.

GETTING READY

Getting ready to retire can be very scarey. Not only is their the uncertainty about finances, there is also the end of a career, loss of routine, loss of workmates, and scariest of all - the acknowledgment that you are getting old. Nonetheless, most people do retire at some point, so you need to get ready.

Getting ready financially was fairly easy for us. We had both been required to contribute to pension plans all our working lives so we were forced to save. If you don't have a pension, you need to put some money away every pay cheque. It's worth it in the long run. We know that some new economic crisis may erode our pensions. But if that happens, everyone will be in the same situation and we'll all just have to figure something out together. Growing potatoes and beans in a rooftop garden might be an option!

Getting ready geographically was also easy. Lot's of people decide to move when they retire. They may down size or move to a retirement community. We decided to stay in our house in Nanaimo because we think Nanaimo has everything anyone could want - no matter what their age.

Getting ready emotionally was also pretty easy. We had both worked for a long time and we both knew it was time for a change. We know some people keep on working way past 65 - but for us the obvious choice was retirement. We saw retirement as a new career - a career of lifelong learning.

Getting ready socially was more of a challenge. We had spent so much time at work that most of our social connections were with people we worked with. Once we retired, we hardly ever saw them. It is important to find new groups of people with whom you share a common interest. Otherwise, retirement could be quite lonely.

RETIRING

We think that actually retiring takes about a year. If you're lucky, you start with a big party.

Here's Penny in a library smock opening up library paraphenalia at her staff party.

At first you feel as if you are on vacation. Everything is relaxed and fun. You may even take a real vacation and go somewhere. But eventually your vacation is over and you don't go back to work. You kind of miss not being able to tell your old workmates about your vacation. You start new hobbies or community involvement and meet new people. You go on another vacation. You change and adapt.

LIVING YOUR NEW LIFE

After about a year of "retiring," you get used to it. There's so much to do. You are busier than you ever were. The day you finally say, "How did I ever have time to go to work?" is the day that you know you have finished retiring.

Penny's dad used to call the early years of his retirement "the halcyon years." You don't feel any different and you can relax and enjoy life. It would be nice if the halcyon years could go on forever but they won't. That's why lifelong learning is a great career choice. No matter how old you get, you can keep on learning something.

We agree with our middle grandson who, when he was eight years old and fed up with school, said: "Life is no fun if you're not retired!"