Hi Seniors,
Today, I was thinking of all the people who are in their 60’s or beyond and are thinking about retiring. Are you a senior and thinking about retirement? If you worked for a company for many years like I did, It is a hard decision to make. But, the day will come when you will make that decision. Here’s my story about how I retired from Raytheon.
What Will I Do?
Some look to retirement as a time to travel, freedom from the daily grind. Retirement, time to do what YOU want and when you want to do it.. Find a hobby, take dancing lessons. If single, find a friend to share your life with or just maybe take walks or visit friends.
Why, I have heard some Seniors are taking boxing lessons. This is all good positive thinking.
I have been retired now for 20 years. I just can’t believe the years flew by so quickly. I worked for Raytheon for almost 40 years.
To retire from being a Raytheon employee for almost 40 years, took a lot of soul searching and thought.
After my children were grown and married, I worked on the second shift for most of my remaining years as a Raytheon employee.
After my shift was over, I would go home and, as everyone working on the second shift knows, you just can’t go to bed and fall asleep right away.
I remember this one man, who worked with us, after arriving at his home and parking in his garage, he would wash his car even before entering his home. He did this every single night. He talked about his car and he really cared about it looking clean and polished.
Another women I knew would water and arrange flowers in pots right on her front porch after arriving home, after midnight.
I, myself, would take out the vacuum and go through the whole house. Polish furniture or throw a pile of laundry in to be washed and dried.
Eventually, about three in the morning sleep would come, and I would be up by nine a.m. This is the norm for people that work on the second shift.
I loved working the second shift, and I met and made friends who were golden. They were the best of the best.
Raytheon in Lowell (MA), was a home away from home to me and to many others. I knew, by entertaining the thought of retirement, I would miss it all.
The work we all did was with a team of people who took great pride in their work. Raytheon, because of people such as these, won many awards as well as contracts.
Retiring would be like leaving family. I shed tears just thinking about it. Almost 40 years is a very long time and it was hard to let go.
I was 63 and thinking, I must make a decision. After a grueling night of should I or shouldn’t I, I finally made my decision to retire.
A Decision to Retire
I did the math and found I could retire and pay the bills. I won’t go into detail but before anyone retires, they must do their due diligence and work out a system that will work in retirement and in their favor.
After my decision, I found that in order to do all the things I wanted to do, it was time to go. It was not only time to go but find out what lies ahead. I wanted to do so many other things.
On weekends I would find solace in my art work. As a child I would write poetry and that interest continued into adulthood.
Time To Do What You Love
As I progressed into my 60’s, I had already written the first pages of a family book. It’s title is, “Antonios, an American Immigrant I Remember.” It’s a book about how my father left Cyprus when he was just a boy, and how he found his way to America.
I finally retired and the first few weeks of retirement were indeed, strange. I thought I was on vacation and it would all end soon. It never ended, and it was just too great for words. I now had the time to do all the things I wanted to do.
I knew I had a gift from the good Lord, and I wanted to explore and use it in some way that would benefit people.
My gift of writing came easily, but my paintings, I thought, needed some improvement and so, I decided to take classes at UMass Lowell (University of Massachusetts – Lowell).
Bringing Out The Artist In Me
It was a fun time, and we had a professor of art that came from Boston to teach art classes. He wasn’t being paid, but it was his way of giving back, he said.
I thought he was doing a good thing. I know I benefited from his giving back, and I appreciated it. People that do good things, like giving back, have great things happen to them.
I learned a lot. Oil on canvas is not only beautiful but lasts for centuries. I learned sketching with charcoal and pen or just pencil. I now have my art on a web-site called “Books By Penelope.com.”
Writing Poetry & Books
I have come a long way since retirement. I have written poetry which is compiled into a book on Amazon Kindle entitled the Alpha Star of Poetry. I am also the recipient for outstanding achievement award in poetry presented by, the International Library of Poetry. I have written fiction and non-fiction books, and I have written children’s stories.
One of many things I value, taught to me by my parents, Antonios and Joanna Savaris is that “The Mind Has No Limits.”
Set your mind into a positive direction, hold in your heart the goodness you want to achieve, and it will happen.
Blogging
As I mentioned before, I recently put up this blog, Just A Senior And Her Blog. This blog is my way of introducing to seniors the help they need for everyday living and to serve as a meeting place to voice their opinions and concerns.
Helping Other Seniors & Retirees
From 50 on up to over 100, my goal is to reach as many seniors as possible and provide helpful information. Help them find a job on line and how to do it. Voting help and helpful hints as well as many other articles of interest. You might find “About Me” page, interesting and inspiring. It is my view on how I see myself as a Senior – A Retired Senior.
In addition to providing Helpful Hints and resources for seniors to help them accomplish a healthy and fulfilled life, seniors may also get my Books, Poetry, and Art using the various links provided on this site.
If you have questions on something you need but don’t see it on the Blog, please leave a comment, and I will do my best to accommodate.
To Raytheon Retirees and to all Seniors and Retirees, have a great day and please, leave a comment. It would be greatly appreciated.
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