Me walking winding paths in Ravello, Italy, shortly after retirement
When I retired at age 54 from a wonderful career as a public school educator, I asked myself the above question in a slightly different way. What do I want my life to be like if I retire early? I had already determined that retirement wasn't the end of life, but the beginning of something new. Yet, what I was about to do felt risky. I had no role models for my future plans. Neither retiring early nor becoming a nomad were mainstream choices. So, although I could easily envision many, many alternative lifestyles, it felt like I was truly creating the next phase of my life from scratch. Needless to say, it was nerve-racking.
Me on the isle of Gozo on our first year abroad
Not only did I retire well over a decade before most of my colleagues, but I started collecting my pension right away which meant it took a hit. I also encouraged my husband to quit his job, sell everything we owned and live everywhere but nowhere with me for four years. Our agreement was that if we returned stateside for more than six months, he would look for work. Most people don't believe this, but our overhead was cheaper as long as we were living outside the US. I'll write about that in another blog post. Suffice it to say, my husband and I really did sell everything we owned and traveled for four years, It was quite the adventure — once I settled down enough to enjoy it. Yeah! I had no role models and so my plan was an evolving experience. For the first year after retirement, I was terribly anxious, all the while second guessing my decision to retire. Did I ruin our lives? What compelled me to take such a risk? After all, I was by nature a very pragmatic person who examined my options carefully.
Sixteen years later, I can say without hesitation that retiring early was a good decision. We have had more adventures than most people can imagine. Because we live debt free with the lowest overhead possible, we soon discovered that we could have a good life on a far smaller income than we had imagined. That continues to be the foundation for our nontraditional life — no debt, lowest overhead possible. That's it! Our simple plan overshadows any advice a traditional financial advisor could offer us. It's given us more personal freedom than almost anyone I know other than the super rich. Even the super rich often seem unable to live within their means. I regularly hear about the wealthy teetering on the edge of bankruptcy. "The more we make the more we spend" is the American Dream which has actually turned out to be the American Nightmare for far too many.
Read an old interview that I did quite a few years ago for JetSet Citizens entitled Expert House-Sitting Advice from Author Teresa Roberts
Was travel adventuring my only post-retirement benefit? Definitely not! I launched a writing career that has been unbelievably fulfilling. I've been writing since I was a kid. Even while I was raising my own children, running a large elementary school, and getting two degrees, I still squeezed in time to write. I wrote twenty one-act plays over the years for my students, two full-length plays for the community and hundreds of poems. I started a number of books and wrote short stories. I even wrote lyrics to songs. But after retirement? Ahhhhh, I was suddenly Stephen King or Ruth Rendell with all the time in the world to devote to writing. I became a digital nomad and carried my small laptop wherever I went. I've written in coffee shops all over the world.
Spain has the best coffee in the world
I once read that Laura Ingalls Wilder wrote the entire Little House series after the age of sixty! Ain't that amazing? That knowledge was inspiring to me. As a kid, Laura was one of my favorite writers. My favorite writer as an adult, Ruth Rendell who also wrote under the name Barbara Vine, was writing psychological murder mysteries until her death at age eighty-five. If you haven't heard of Rendell, she's an English author. I've provided a link above to more information about this amazing woman.
Since retirement, I've written and published four books, hundreds of poems ( a handful have been published), became a travel blogger and started a free-lance writing business. I begin each day with a cup of coffee and at least two hours of writing. What a luxury. The gift of time is much appreciated after having been on the clock for so many years as a teacher and a principal. Now, I can sit and reflect and then write. It's wonderful.
My most recent publication, Hearing Voices. (click to order on Amazon)
Sure, plenty of people still retire and sit in a chair waiting for death, but more and more of us insist on recreating ourselves and expanding our passionate interests. It's a privilege to get to wake up each morning and ask myself, "What do I want to do today?" It's an even greater privilege to be able to answer that question with fresh ideas and pure excitement. To feel as spontaneous as I remember feeling as a child is the best life I can imagine for myself. As long as I have ideas flowing and things that interest me, I'll be fine. In fact, I think that's the secret to a good life at any age.
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