LABOR DAY AND OTHER PONDERINGS

Today is Labor Day and for a good many U.S. citizens it means a day off. But when you're retired and have animals, days "off" is kind of a misnomer! The chickens, dogs, cats, goats and ponies--and, oh yes!--the donkey, don't know about days off for humans--for that matter neither do our human stomachs. All these stomachs still need to be fed! And every living thing just mentioned depends on human action to make it happen!


Even if I don't cook today (but I will!) some effort will have to be made on someone's part to put nourishment into my body! So what's a day off mean, anyway?


To me, it means an opportunity to do something out of my ordinary schedule. Maybe I'll "play" today instead of "work". But how do we differentiate play from work? One person's work might be another person's play! 


I'm retired so I have more choices than I did when I worked. When I worked in an office I was expected to show up at a specific time and my life was ruled by schedules. Days off meant I didn't have to report to the office but it still meant I was probably going to do something with my time--maybe the biggest difference is whether or not I'm productive.


There's no question that being retired means a person no longer has to be productive. Some times that's a good thing! There's something to be said for relaxing and clearing one's mind. And that, in itself, can lead to being ultimately more productive. I've found this to be true, especially lately.


Lately, my husband and I have had the opportunity to shake up our schedules. We've done some traveling and relaxing and I believe it has had a positive influence on how I face my life. I find I have renewed energy and optimism to continue on.  I'm able to set some positive goals and maybe even lay down a foundation and a path by which to achieve them. So perhaps as much as anything, vacations and changes of venue allow us to give pause to reflect.


My husband and I just celebrated 45 yrs. of marriage--an endurance accomplishment if nothing else! A lot has happened in our lives and in our world in the past 45 yrs. and the world doesn't stop spinning just because we've reached this point. 


I look forward to celebrating 50 yrs. in the future and that gives me a goal to work towards during the next five years! Speaking of which, I'd better get going. Goals aren't accomplished overnight and even though it's Labor Day--I've still got to feed those chickens!


Love and peace!


Carol