Fourth of a four-part series dealing with retirement.
Update: The enjoyable path of our fictional hero, Rob, continues as he “repots” himself after retiring from full-time business activities and discovers SIRs.
Well, it has been over two and a half years now since Rob packed his belongings at work and headed home. In some respects it’s hard to believe. He still remembers, talks about it, and even occasionally hears from some of the old gang. But, the freedom he now enjoys more than overcomes his desire to return to work.
One of the major contributions to his retirement enjoyment has been the membership in SIRs (Sons in Retirement.) Admittedly he approached joining with a bit of trepidation, but that is now long gone. He plays golf with the branch almost weekly and has gone on several week-long outings put on by the State SIR organization. He’s back to playing cards several times a month as well. His wife has joined him and other SIR couples on morning walks and day-long exploratory trips to local venues. Although they have not gone on any of the international trips as yet, the possibility of their joining the travelers remains strong.
Best of all, Rob, has made a number of new friends. Similar to work, he found some guys he identified with and a few with which he had nothing in common. Here he was allowed to choose and soon became quite close to a number of the men. He sits with them at lunch and often stays for a drink with them after golf.
But now Rob was faced with a new dilemma – one which required some thought. He was asked, by the nominating committee, to become an officer in his branch.
Rob had joined SIR purely for selfish reasons. He had been lonesome and at loose ends, and the organization had remedied that. The fact that there were about twenty thousand SIR members and one hundred and twenty plus branches in northern California was of minor interest to him. He focused on his own branch of about one hundred and twenty members and didn’t bother about the details.
But now Rob began to feel a little guilty about his early selfish reasons. He had received a great deal of pleasure from SIR; and, being the kind of person he was, he realized he needed to return the favor and give something back. And, becoming an officer in his branch might solve that need.
He had often wondered early on how SIR could do so much without membership fees. How could they put on so many events at a reasonable price? Then he learned there were no paid employees or positions. All of this work was being done by volunteers, and now he was being asked to give back a little of what he had been given. Frankly, it seemed more than fair to him.
As you’ve probably guessed, Rob became an officer, and, well, the rest is history. I’ll leave it to you to finish the story.