Life of Leisure
This morning while driving the first
of my two granddaughters to school (which I do strictly of my own volition). We engaged in conversation as we always do,
except that this time it took a very different direction. Our typical conversation is about the
weather, upcoming events at her school or in the family. This morning she started off by saying that
she really didn’t feel like going to school.
My response was that there are many things, I would rather not do. Some of those “things” have some flexibility
where I can decide to do or not to do, and some that I have a commitment to and
must do.
Of the two granddaughters that I drive
to school, one is 10 years old and the other is 6. The granddaughter that sparked the
conversation and this Blog post is the 10-year-old. Her response to me was (innocently), “you are
so lucky that you can just go home and do nothing or only what you want to do.” Before I continue, I want to make sure that
we all have the same definition of Leisure.
Leisure
Noun
- freedom from the demands of work or duty:
She looked forward to retirement and a life of
leisure.
- time free from the demands of work or duty,
when one can rest, enjoy hobbies or sports, etc.:
- Most evenings he had the leisure in which to
follow his interests.
- unhurried ease: a work written with leisure and grace.
I retired
early with a comfortable pension to avoid unnecessary work stress, and
hopefully maintain a life of leisure and in great health (so far so good on
only one of those two goals, health).
The leisure part I have yet to realize.
It was so
much easier to schedule a day or even half day away from work to play golf or
go fishing, than it is to take time away from my granddaughters and
grandson. I am not complaining and the difficulty
in getting away is my sense of responsibility to them (the children) not to
their parents.
I presently take
my two granddaughters to school in two different but adjoining cities
(thankfully different start times to accommodate the travel time). I also pick them up at end of school day.
The last time
that I took a vacation out of State by myself the grandkids cried and missed me
so much that I couldn’t really enjoy my time away. I felt a deep guilt as if I had abandoned
them. Fortunately, this year’s vacation
is all about them and will include a stop to visit the happiest place in the
world (Disney).
I explained
to my 10-year-old granddaughter that I officially started working at age 12 (I
was raised on the farm) following the end of the school year. Keep in mind that the first six or so years
where Summer jobs. Nonetheless I logged
a total of 50 years in the work force.
My explanation was meant to justify what she perceived as being my life
of leisure. The best is yet to come………
You are living the life the way you want to!
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