As I crossed the threshold of retirement, I felt like a bird soaring into the vast sky after being caged for years. The freedom I had longed for and the time I could fill entirely with my own will unfolded before my eyes. While I prided myself on living a relatively free life during my career, post-retirement life was on a whole different level. My heart swelled at the thought of being able to do what I truly wanted, not just what was assigned to me.
However, I soon realized that life isn't that simple. Retirement didn't mean escaping all responsibilities. Instead, new forms of obligations were waiting. Requests from people around me, saying, "Now that you're free, could you do this for me?" were constant, and my role as a church leader actually expanded. Through these changes, I deeply understood that life unfolds in continuous relationships. I might have retired from school, but I realized there's no retirement from life itself.
My days post-retirement are still busy. I write books, create dictionaries, and give speeches and sermons here and there. But all these activities now hold a different meaning. I approach them not as obligations but as choices, not as burdens but as pleasures.
Retirement isn't an end; it's a new beginning. It's like a key that opens a new chapter in our lives. Of course, there are unexpected challenges, but within them, I discover deeper meanings of life. Retirement life is happy. It's a time filled with lightness, freedom, and new possibilities. Based on the experience and wisdom I've accumulated over the years, it's now an opportunity to live the life I truly desire.
However, I soon realized that life isn't that simple. Retirement didn't mean escaping all responsibilities. Instead, new forms of obligations were waiting. Requests from people around me, saying, "Now that you're free, could you do this for me?" were constant, and my role as a church leader actually expanded. Through these changes, I deeply understood that life unfolds in continuous relationships. I might have retired from school, but I realized there's no retirement from life itself.
My days post-retirement are still busy. I write books, create dictionaries, and give speeches and sermons here and there. But all these activities now hold a different meaning. I approach them not as obligations but as choices, not as burdens but as pleasures.
Retirement isn't an end; it's a new beginning. It's like a key that opens a new chapter in our lives. Of course, there are unexpected challenges, but within them, I discover deeper meanings of life. Retirement life is happy. It's a time filled with lightness, freedom, and new possibilities. Based on the experience and wisdom I've accumulated over the years, it's now an opportunity to live the life I truly desire.
