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| We traveled from Hanoi north to Sapa situated very near the base of the Himalayas. |
I received an offer to apply for an audition the other day. The sender wanted me to tell about how I had gotten to be so lucky and maybe brag about some mountain I had climbed. It was all about being wild, reckless and daring in retirement. Even though the pay was substantial, I turned it down. But not for the reason you might imagine.
Actually my husband and I have done some pretty awesome things in the last 10 years that give me the right to brag. So it wasn't the mountain climbing that stopped me in my tracks. It was the part about explaining how we had came to be so fortunate at this time in our life.
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| Yes, we walked this trail...no railings, each step different! |
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| 2 miles later straight down at the floor of the gorge! |
They wanted me to tell what decisions we made when we were young that gave us the money to do what we want right now. There really is no way to guide others to do what we did. The simple fact is we stayed the course. We didn't dabble with our money or take it out here and put it there. The retirement plan we were offered survived and in that we were lucky!
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| Our adult children, spouses and my daughter-in-law's mother in the center. |
But I have to say that what we did sacrifice for was the education of our children. That was the really big investment we made. It was not easy. No debt followed them into life. Now we are sitting back and enjoying the fruits of our labors. That investment has changed the quality of our retirement in ways I cannot even describe. It is wonderful.
The fact that they share in our life is beyond amazing. We
are very very lucky people.
Note: Oh by the way, it was my oldest son that invited us to travel with his family and friends to Vietnam. He was the first of our children to graduate from college. He now has his masters and is working on his doctorate. The seeds we planted continue to grow!
Have a wonderful day!
Have you been offered the chance to audition for an online commercial on retirement?
b+
I'm impressed. I'm glad you turned your commercial down. Integrity is worth as least as much as money is. Although, I will concede it's a lot easier to buy food, utilities and shelter when you have money. :-)
ReplyDeleteYou are so right but let me say here I am not a star so like so many others, I would not be giving up my "day job" if I had one. This was a one off and will never happen again.
DeleteNo, I've never been offered an audition for an online commercial on retirement. Suspect it's because our home was bought in the '70s, I had a benefit-defined retirement plan, wife stayed home to raise kids and worked when we needed extra, and I belonged to a UNION. In short, we raised a family in a more humane economy. Nobody wants to hear that now.
ReplyDeleteThat was our life too...very wonderful but no mountains to climb or double marathons, etc. I like it a lot!
DeleteNo one has approached me and no one probably ever will. My adventure is in venues that would bore the people who make these commercials. I applaud you!
ReplyDeleteWell, you need to understand that the opportunity to apply for the position is not like actually getting it! And I don't think that your world would bore me at all...how do you do that? I applaud you!
DeleteNobody offers me anything except one great old friend; people ask me for free advice; to make their writings publishable; to publish them so I'm a bit jealous.
ReplyDeleteYou should have taken it as staying the course is important and a lesson many people learn too late or never learn.
Giving your children the gift of education is the most important and best gift you can give them. My sister and b-i-l paid for my niece's Barnard/Columbia education. Now she's in Texas teaching the poorest kids she could find, it seems. The program's so poor part of her salary is in food stamps! But she could do that because she has no debt and her parents pay half the rent (cheap to us NY'ers) in a gated community for 20somethings. One of her two aunts (cough) buys her the little luxuries---a water bottle so pricey I went into shock and didn't buy one for myself! But she's great and this is just is the beginning.
My parents imbued me with the importance of no debt--except for a mortgage---but I have always paid cash---not sure it was the wisest decision during the recession but when you don't have debt you have freedom. I find it hard to talk about too and sometimes force myself. I would never go into more specifics because---it's personal, more personal than anything---and when I read some frugal blogs, the numbers just don't add up, and I'm sure people think me frivilous because I like clothes, books, and bitching about the cable company while having every station but the sports package---though I barely watch any. There's a lot to be said for frivilous frugal living
You know I think you hit on something here Pia that I had not thought about...it may be that I am simply too private and don't need the attention to feel good about myself. Oh, and I do not have any FREE advice to give!
DeleteBe well.
b+
I also have never been approached to write something like that. I don't mind, my life is quite satisfying and although we don't have much money, we have enough in retirement not to have to pinch pennies. SS certainly helps! :-)
ReplyDeleteBut Djan, of all the people I know in my blogging world, you are the one that jumped out of planes and climbed as high as you were allowed. Isn't is wonderful to be satisfied with what we have and what we have done yet don't need to blow our own horn for the world to see?
DeleteThank you for your comment!