When I was twelve years old, I recall thinking that I would be sixty years old in 2012.  Such a futuristic date!  So far off, so space age.
 
For some reason, men had to work for 65 years but women got a five-year reprieve.  So, when I finished working at my education, I would then continue until I was sixty.  That’s a long time to work.
 
Years later, my father finally retired from working the farm at eighty.  Mum had always worked at home and on the farm but had slowed down in her late sixties.
 
For the first half of my working life, my high-flying career was my whole life.  I decided then, that I would not be retiring, as I loved my work so much.  I could not imagine myself without my job title.
 
So, the years rolled by steadily, interspersed with children, family, travel and work.  Always working harder and more than was really necessary.  Our family have all inherited a very strong work ethic from my parents.
 
Seminars began to appear in my emails. ‘Preparation for Retirement’.  I scoffed. I didn’t need that.
 
Things in my private life were not so good.  Work kept me going.  My husband and I lived apart, he in our big house, me with my sister.
 
Eventually I did attend a Retirement Seminar, where I learned that preparation was crucial to a happy post work life.
 
This preparation, apart from money matters, included advice to wind down gently, maybe work part time for a while to adjust to more free time.  We were encouraged to maintain contact with friends and work colleagues.  Make travel plans for our future freedom.  Consider volunteering within the community and join clubs and group activities.  Spend time outdoors, exercising.  Find new interests to keep our minds and bodies active.  Create a list of all the things we put off when we don’t have enough free time.
 
By this stage, retirement ages had been adjusted and I was well past sixty.
 
The seminar did plant some ideas about how I would like to spend the last thirty years of my life.  (Dad lived to 98 and that is my goal!).  Just small seeds, but I was considering retirement.
 
I persuaded my husband to sell our house in the Dandenong Ranges as we were both over bushfire, fallen tree threats.
 
We opted to jointly buy a house in Benalla as we could not afford two houses.  He was anxious to retire, so he moved to Benalla immediately.
 
I stayed with my older sister, who was now ill with cancer.  Still happily working, I took a planned holiday on my own to England to visit my son in February 2020.  When I returned to the office in March, I resumed my busy working life.
 
Within weeks the Covid Epidemic settled over Australia, and we were told we would have to work from home.  I couldn’t set up an office at my sister’s home, so within 24 hours I retired. 
 
Retired?  How can that be me?  I’m not old!  That’s what old people do!  I was worried that I could put my sister at risk of catching Covid, so another major decision was made overnight, that I would move to Benalla.  I just made it there before the lockdown was imposed.
 
So, ‘Preparation’ is the key to a happy retirement, they say!
 
I was denied any preparation time, at least mentally and emotionally.  Yes, I had thought that I would become involved in community, clubs and volunteering.  I would travel, I would spend time with family and friends.
 
Instead, my retirement was none of those things.
 
Adjustment to living with my estranged husband once again.  No work, no busy schedules, no friends here, no family.
 
My sister deteriorated and I could not visit her.  She died in a hospice and my brother and I were allowed only a couple of hours with her before she passed away.  My other sister in Perth was not allowed to come to see her at all.
 
No funeral.  She just disappeared from our lives.
 
The days, weeks, months dragged on. 
 
Alone in a place where I knew no one else.
 
My husband spent all day in his shed.  I began cooking, but also eating and eating.  I gained 30 kilograms.  This wasn’t me!  This strange person.   I walked, but it was limited and didn’t help.
 
There were so many groups and activities available in Benalla I discovered, but all were in hiatus due to Covid.
 
I was fearful that my dialysis dependent brother could be taken away by Covid.  My younger sister is in Perth.  I had not seen her for so long and it didn’t seem likely for the foreseeable future.
 
My nature is to be gregarious, but I frequently did not speak to anyone for days.
 
Days came and went in a fuzzy blur.  I tried to keep busy with craft but I had been so work oriented for so long.  I felt that this was wasting constructive, productive time.
 
I had not had sufficient transition time to retirement to allow myself enjoyment of these activities.  They were always something to be snatched in a few precious minutes.  Not something one could indulge in daily.
 
It made me feel guilty to be doing craft work.  It took away my creative pleasure.
 
I felt I was just filling in time.  Till what?  Death?  But that is not meant to happen for another 30 years.  Is this all there is?  Retirement?
 
Depression was overcoming me.  I felt edgy.  No one from my ‘real life’ would recognise me.  Overweight, no clothes that fitted, hair neglected, no makeup.  No longer me at all, trapped in this silent world.
 
So, three years down the retirement track, Covid has receded and life has resumed other peoples’ normality.
 
But not my normality.
 
That just vanished in a rush in March 2020. 
 
It has never returned for me.  A new life has enveloped me, but I still have that sense of just filling in my time.  Wasting time.
 
Retirement doesn’t seem productive or measurable.
 
It is not the joyous freedom that I had vaguely anticipated.
 
I feel that I have become irrelevant in a world in which I used to be a ‘someone’.
 
It’s not what I expected, but I understand that it did not occur in the usual way.
 
If I had retired prior to 2020, I’m sure my retirement experience would have been totally different. 
 
It just happened to me.  Like many things do in life.
 
But I guess I now have 28 years left to make it work for me and enjoy it...
 
 
Jill Gaumann,
August 2023

When I was young I could only read about retired men. I didn't know any personally. Sometimes there would be photos in the newspaper. They would be older men - thin - wizened - and the photograph would show them standing or kneeling in front of the flowers in their front garden. They would explain that they devoted their time to their garden. Sometimes the photo would show both husband and wife. Both would be beaming happily. They did look happy and contented.  They were not beset with worries about money. Retirement was an exciting and pleasurable thing. It was something to look forward to. I could only dream about it though.

I did have some relatives in Melbourne - men - who were retired. One was an official high up in the Police Force who claimed that he went back to work the day after he retired. He didn't last long in retirement because he died within a few months. I did have one other relative - a man - who survived Gallipoli and was supposed to have health problems.  He also seemed to die quickly.

I lived in an area where men didn't retire. They normally died in office. They were farmers mostly. No males in my family lived past 60. The normal thing was to die in your 50’s.

In my life I never  overburdened myself with hard work and stayed fairly healthy. But I had the concept conditioned in me. I imagined that when I turned 70 I would retire and die soon after.

This hasn’t happened.

When I did retire I had not planned it. I did not expect to retire. What happened was that my wife retired. She was offered a retirement window and she had to take up the offer straight away. Even she didn't want to retire at that particular time. Because she retired she thought it would be a good idea to move immediately to Benalla.  I had to make several decisions. One of which was that I had to completely retire.

We moved to Benalla. I made several attempts to gain employment in Benalla. I don’t know if I was serious. But I did make enquiries. I didn't want to work in an Accountants office. I only wanted to work in Benalla. I did not manage to gain employment.

I planned to keep myself busy and purchased Pepys Diary with the intention of carefully reading it in full. It turned out I only read it when having breakfast. It did provoke an interest in Pepys however. He wrote it in code. He knew that if the authorities were informed as to what he wrote he would be in deep trouble. He did live through some interesting times. The fire. The death of Charles 1st. He once saw Shakespeare's Hamlet and was impressed with the to be or not to be soliloquy.  He did an enormous amount of refurbishing inside his house. He did not keep a diary all his life. He discontinued it several times and twice took it up again after a vacant space.

Even his editors censored his writing. He lusted after most women and was not afraid to make sexual advances. He always thought of sex when he saw women. He would start each month with the news that his wife was menstruating and the editors deleted this from the published diary.

After 2 months my previous work phoned and asked if I could come back to work. I didn't even think about it. I said "Yes" before they could explain why.

This led to another career. I was able to commute to Melbourne every week and boarded with friends for 3 nights a week. Later on our house became vacant and I was able to move back in and work full time. Some things had changed. There was a niche for me. I took on a higher management role in production. I continued with sales also. After some time The company was taken over by a larger firm and I was asked to stay on. As as salesman.

I enjoyed the feeling of having this extra time added on to my working life. It meant I could retire when I wanted to.

The downside was I had to drive to Melbourne each week. And drive home. I had to watch for Kangaroos on the road.  It was a worrisome thing.  I saw a delivery Van in Bonnie Doon deliberately drive over a young Kangaroo. This type of image stays with us. I cannot fathom the mentality of some people.  The two people in the van had smiles on their faces as they drove deliberately at the animal.

Eventually it did not suit me to work in a large corporation whose head office was in Brisbane. I was offered a job in Brisbane and it was hinted that I might go to Malaysia. The company was expanding into Asia. They had a large printing plant in Vietnam. Employees came and went to gain experience. But they also had simple rules. You had to attend sales meetings every Monday morning. If people didn't conform they were quickly disposed of. An out of date computer system had to be coped with. The firm who took us over had people with preconceived ideas as to who was important.

I retired a second time. This time I enjoyed it. I discovered an organisation called U3A and immersed myself in it.
​

Neville Gibb
September 2023

​At the end of each term we had a classroom concert with an invitation in Indonesian, songs, students showing their language skills and always finishing with a play based on an Indonesian folk story. Parents loved it as did the performers.

​Since my first book had sold out long ago, I decided to use my twenty five years of experience to write one last book called ‘Making Indonesian Fun’. It was launched not long before I came to Benalla. I was 83 at the time.

I’ve realised that basically I’ve spent my life talking, singing and writing.

What was that about retirement?

What’s next on the list?
 
Carmyl Winkler
August 2023

My retirement was driven by a disruptive medical issue, Cancer of my mouth in 2017. My partner also had her work disrupted due to urging to take leave to support her partner with Cancer.

In this time, we purchased our South Yarra apartment and sold our family home in Mount Waverley, including renovations and moving.

My partner’s work was impacted and wasn’t the same after she returned to work, so six months later she resigned (retired). I continued working from home for another six months and then pulled the pin on all work.

During the following months we looked at purchasing a country property and undertaking some travel with our caravan. This was after we completed 4 weeks working for Blazeaid as volunteers, very enjoyable. However my partner, who had completed many years volunteering, declared "I am not volunteering any more".

So we looked around for a country property to suit our budget and give us something meaningful to do, such as clean up a property, place a house on it and use as a country retreat. The property we found was 3 hours north of Melbourne which was a bit of a challenge.  Covid was upon us, however as owner builders we were allowed to visit our site to meet contractors and do work (2021). The property was a 2-acre block where the house had burnt down (deliberately lit apparently to collect insurance!)

We began our search for a suitable portable home which was cheap and could be moved to the site complete. The council advised that as it was a portable, relocatable dwelling, we didn’t need a building permit!  This has since been revised and we had to go through the whole process of stumps, power, septic and getting sign off.

The whole process took about 9 months to complete, and we moved the cabin on at the end of 2021.  We then decided to sell the apartment and moved permanently to Yundool, 35 km north of Benalla. Our retirement activities included many long walks and bike rides exploring the local area (pubs, towns and finding all the best pie shops).

The project included large decks and verandahs, front and back.  We finally received our certificate of occupancy. One of the gotchas was our BAL 29 fire rating which required steel mesh screens.  The final item to be ticked off was a compliance certificate for the glass shower screen (ridiculous!). We now had our permanent place of residence and could live there.

Job done. It was an interesting journey dealing with council, building surveyors and our cabin supplier, who stopped taking our calls as soon as the 12-month warranty expired.
​
The neighbours were very helpful at all steps of the journey, including pulling trucks out of the mud and mowing the grass so we weren’t at risk of grass fires. We learnt so much and enjoyed being back in a country location where people are helpful, welcoming and we only have 40 years to go to becoming a local!

During the project we encountered another issue that is now my retirement activity…..  (for another time…..)
 

James Davey
​August 2023

​I had planned to retire at 70 years.   For some time, I had been purchasing household items such as sheets and towels, boxing them up to use in later in life.   I purchased additional basic clothing with the same thought in mind, however, did not take into account that I would not stay the same build and they would not fit when I decided to use them.    St. Vinnies was a blessing to donate to at this time.    This was my aim, however fate changed my path; my partner passed away suddenly, and due to circumstances beyond my control I had to leave my employment of 23½ years owing to an extremely stressful situation.    I left under Workcover and was effectively forced to ‘retire’ at 68.
 
I sat for a while, looking at four walls in a home I had just purchased.  I was lonely, as living at Winton I never came into town very often and had only two friends in the area.    I drifted from one thing to another – took up quilting; took up diamond painting; eventually joined a croquet club; but I was never really happy with myself or my place in life at that time.     Many a day and night were spent in tears – looking at a long, lonely future by myself.   I was quite happy to spend a day behind closed doors, I now realise, feeling sorry for myself.    This went on for 12 months.   
 
Then Workcover gave me an ultimatum – they were cutting my benefits and I could either get a job or retire.     I tried to get a job – too old and really no interest.   I had not done any financial planning for my future.    I had very little superannuation as this was not required many years ago.    I would have to go on the Pension.  How was I going to live, eat and just survive.  My life was once again in a turmoil.
 
I sought help and this time, looking at the two choices I had, ‘I’ made the decision to retire.    Suddenly I understood.     It was my choice now, not forced on me.    I could now sit down and plan for my future.    I had limited income – how could I make it go further and enjoy myself at the same time.    I received some monies on retirement and bought a new car, a reliable vehicle to transport me to places.     I set myself up in my home, this time with retirement in view and to save me on additional expenses in future.   As stated previously, I had boxed items for the future, some of which I could use.
 
With this different attitude to retirement as my choice, I made an extra effort to fill in my time.  I set myself a daily schedule, joined various groups such as U3a, the Age Friendly Reference Group, Garden Club; took more interest in my croquet, joined Committees, and more.    I was starting to live again.  My days were now busy.  I met so many wonderful people from all walks of life, and more importantly, stopped feeling sorry for myself.    After many years of working 7 days a week I could now ‘stop to smell the roses’, not feel guilty if I wished to pass the afternoon away reading a good book, or even taking a nap.    I could have more contact with my children and my grandchildren who were growing up fast. I had missed out on so much.
 
I can now say – Retirement is great, and I highly recommend it!
 
 
Heather Wallace
August 2023

​Norm Fisher has died!!!!!
​
Norm was the well-loved and respected Director of the Canberra Institute of Technology. He died within two weeks of retiring. It was a shock for most of us but in those days, such an event was not unusual. The phenomena of leaders and senior managers, in high profile challenging jobs, dying soon after retirement, was not an uncommon tragedy at the turn of the century. Since then much research, advocacy and strategic intervention has sought to create,  in many workplaces, a more sustainable work life balance. Yet there are still pockets where long work hours or poorly managed shift work rosters impact significantly on physical and mental health.

Data in a recently released report showed that 20 per cent of Australian men and 7 per cent of women worked 50 hours or more per week in paid employment in 2015. This was down from 26 per cent and 8 per cent respectively in 2004. Despite the reduction in hours, Australia is still among the bottom third of OECD countries when it comes to working long hours.

I was not a senior manager. I enjoyed my job as a middle manager combining management and teaching but I did live with the stress of managing both roles. I loved the teaching, especially at night to mature-age students. At one stage though, I had responsibility for thirty full time, part-time and casual teaching staff. The financial pressures on the TAFE at the time and the fatigue I had accumulated meant that when the opportunity came for early ‘retirement’ at 60, I enthusiastically said ‘yes please’.

Although too old ‘to retire to stud’, I was much too young to turn to a life of bowls and bingo. A number of friends I discovered, freed from the 40-50 hour burden of full employment, undertook courses, particularly through TAFE or local community organisations. I developed an interest in horticulture and began a Certificate IV. I enjoyed the nature of applied learning and found great satisfaction in propagating plants from seeds, cuttings or grafts, successfully selling all of them at our annual Spring fair.

I also discovered that the skills I had gained in my various workplaces, I could access successfully in casual and part-time employment. I worked on three national Census’, two as an area manager. I worked as a Bureau of Census and Statistics interviewer for their monthly statistics and as an administrator for an Eco community. I have been an enthusiastic participant in a number of national health research projects and a regular polling booth worker for local, state and federal elections.

I am not alone in acknowledging that a post ‘retirement’ period can be the most satisfying and enriching period of life. I do also recognise that many in our community do not have the luxury of stable and secure living arrangements or a steady and secure retirement income that offers a buffer in times of economic stress. I am both humbled and grateful for the opportunities I have been given. 


Graham Jensen
August 2023

​My senses are heightened as I drive to my final night's work. The road is long. "Oh please may there be no fog!" The freeway is well marked and orderly, so different now from the narrow roads through thick fog and floodwater and fire in 1973.

As is fitting Leanne hands over to me; she is from my past, from other work places. She says, "Enjoy your night." and I do.

There is no sadness in leaving. There is pride in a good career of 48 years nursing, carried out with as much integrity that I can summon. The years come flooding back. What was the best? That's easy, it's my time spent in theatre, casualty and acute nursing.

Good times? They would be hard to find. That's not what it's about. There were triumphs in lives saved. At the same time there were traumas that took you to the wire, and all of this against the backdrop of your own personal life.

When we were young everything was great and we thought we would live forever. Then fate dumps a dying friend in your care and you walk the line between nurse and friend.

In the last few years of nursing in Aged Care I’ve met some rich characters; that is, rich in wisdom in their final years. What flowed through them was tranquillity, a quiet endurance and knowledge of themselves and their world. This takes them well into their nineties before life's spin of the wheel caught up with them.

So what has been the importance of my work? It's to keep my patients in a pain free, comfortable, peaceful and secure environment and to see a smile on their face. When a little old lady looks up at me from her snug warm bed and says, "It’s so nice to see you again." I know I have done a good job. That's enough, that's the good times.

It's my last night as a nurse. I am on a high. This is the same feeling as when I found I had passed my final exams. It’s 1965; the results are in the evening papers. The Matron rings the hospital reception. "Thelma, are the results out yet?" "I don't know." "Well, has anything unusual happened?" Thelma tells her that I have just come bolting down the stairs and have run out of the building!" "Thank you Thelma, the results are out then." She knew us well. I walk on my rounds tonight enjoying every step.

When the morning staff arrive I tell them it's my last handover to them. They look at me dumbly, they think I’m joking. I give them a thorough handover and then count the drugs for the last time with the new Indian nurse who is in charge of the morning shift. There is none of the old crew to say, "Take care. We'll miss you." They have retired long ago.

​I open the glass front door into the rest of the world and as the sunlight hits me in the face I am struck with a feeling of sheer joy. Now it's my time in the sun. I sing all the way home.


​Bev Morton
August 2023

The date was 23rd December, 1998 and our business was closing for the Christmas break.  I considered that the time had come for me to retire and relax.  The staff gathered and had a farewell drink with me.

I had been in the work force for 48 years, the last 31 in an accounting partnership.

And so I entered a relaxed period, with thoughts of travel foremost n my mind.

That was so until a contemporary practitioner (Wal Pfeiffer) approached me and said, "Ray, you have to help me!"

The Goods and Services Tax (GST) had been introduced and pre-empted much addtional work for those in the accounting profession.

He requested me to work with him for three days a week in the months ending each quarter, to assist with quarterly GST returns.  As he and I had studied together and had been been friends for many years, I agreed.  However, I hadn't foreseen, (nor had Wal), that I would be with him for two years solid!

Notwithstanding, I really enjoyed that role, and December of the year 2000 saw my eventual retirement.


Being retired does not mean that one is not occupied.  I continued, and even expanded, my roles in Probus and U3A.  I carried on my role of honorary auditor of a number of community clubs, and there was more time for lawn bowls.

I took on the position of Finance Director for 4 years with the Bowls Cub and then another four years as Secretary of the club.

Then the "real" retirement!  A Trafalgar tour of Europe and Scandinavia.  And so we enjoyed Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Estonia and St. Petersburg.  Afterwards we returned to London, where our daughter, Cathy, was managing the marketing arm of Brown Bros (Milawa) Britain circuit.  Being away from home and Mum & Dad, Cathy was experiencing some loneliness, so we stayed a while with her in her small Windsor flat, just a little way from Windsor Castle.  We then flew with her to Paris and Barcelona and followed that with a flight and several days stay in Ireland.

On return home to Benalla we settled again into retirement mode, just taking life on a day to day basis.

While I was enjoying lawn bowls, Bernadette was settling into golf (coupled with lawn mowing, gardening and home duties).

We took a flight to Norfolk Island and a bus tour to Kangaroo Island, and then became attracted to cruising with the Princess line.  We went on six cruises to New Zealand, the Pacific Islands, and Singapore and then .... COVID struck!  An unintended halt to travel!

All along I have been a member of the U3A "Singing for Fun" group where a group of approximately 30 of us "oldies" get together each week.  We have given presentations to the Cooinda and the Freemasons' oldies a number of times.

I have also been a member of the FCJ College "Let's Find Our Voice" program over the last 2 years.   We rehearsed with the Year 7 students for 3 months prior to our public presentations at BPAC and the FCJ Hall and made some memorable friendships with the youngsters.

On 20th and 21st June we reached our climax.  For Bernadette's birthday our family sent us to Sydney to see the Disney presentation of Beauty and the Beast.  We were spoiled rotten with the show, a suite overlooking the Opera House, the Harbour Bridge and the bay and a chauffeur driven experience for 2 days.

WHO WOULDN'T BE RETIRED???


Ray O'Shannessy
August 2023

A word that puts excitement into the lives of some and fear in others. For some it’s a time to fulfil all those ambitions and dreams that were placed on hold while working. Yet for others it’s a time of thinking what now?

Sadly, I was in the latter category. I was lucky in that I was never unemployed. I had a variety of interesting careers which meant that every day I was up, off and running to complete the days tasks. Some of my career choices were in those occupations where regular hours are impossible and one never knew what the day was going to bring. Travel also featured prominently so life was never dull. The one thing I had no experience of was taking it easy. That was a totally alien concept. The thought of getting up in the morning with nowhere I had to be,  scared me.

So, that day that we were gathered in the canteen and told that we were all to be made redundant, the company was closing, was a devastating blow. The company made up amazing resumes which were sent out on our behalf to assist us with job applications. But it appears that 20yrs in the industry and a good reputation means nothing when competing with 20 something uni grads. I was on the scrap heap. Mid 60’s and wiped off the employment list. Scary stuff. Suddenly the excitement in my day was cleaning out a cupboard, sitting in my sewing room, or pottering in the garden. For some that was pleasure, for me it was boredom. A kind of home detention. I had to fix this.

During the last year of employment, we had been looking for a house in N.E. Victoria//Southern NSW as a holiday home and eventual retirement place. Somewhere out of the hustle and bustle of city life and closer to family. Then my husband got offered an early retirement package which he readily accepted. Plans accelerated and we sold our city house, found our rural home and off we went. Ready to start a new life as retirees. Whatever that may be.

Well, I quickly learnt that you don’t stand in the middle of Benalla and say I want to volunteer, you get run over in the rush. After the basic unpacking and sorting I was bored already so I went was the Information Centre to see what was in and around Benalla. I asked if there were any volunteering roles so I could try to fill in my day. I became a volunteer at the Centre where I learnt all about my new home. During training I was shown the Aviation Museum, so I found myself working there too. Of course, I ended up in the RSL having transferred membership and there I met the Salvos chaplain who introduced me to the Op Shop where I began volunteering. Through that I met CWA ladies and of course, volunteer there too. My neighbor introduced me to Probus where I eventually became newsletter editor, then secretary. Paul became Vice President at the RSL and attended a Lions changeover dinner with me as guest. That lead to me joining Lions where I became involved with the driver reviver program, kids public speaking comp, raffles, fundraisers and the antiques fair. I eventually became secretary there too. I was also introduced to U3A, and found many interesting social groups to join.

After 8 years of retirement, I currently am secretary to the RSL, GV Rail and VT Lions. Vice President of CWA as well as being their craft coordinator. I do newsletters for two organizations and I still volunteer at the op shop, the Aviation Museum and assist with RSL Welfare and my most recent achievement, I actually joined the Salvos!

​One day I’ll look up that word “retirement” and see what it means!

In 1993 I took up a position with UD Trucks, or Nissan Diesel. My initial appointment with UD Trucks Oceania was as Southern Regional Manager. This position was based in Melbourne, and covered the dealer group in Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania.

In August 1994, I was transferred to Sydney to take up the position of National Parts Manager, however upon arrival the General Manager informed me that I was also the National Marketing Manager for both trucks and parts. I did enquire as to the possibility of two remuneration packages, however that request was met with a fairly negative response. I dutifully performed in both roles increasing sales and market share.
​
In February 2002 my wife and I purchased ‘Condarra’, a 570 acre property in Samaria. The property was leased out, with the longer term view of moving onto the property when we retired.

In May 2006 I was asked by the Managing Director to complete a ‘due diligence’ report for Mack, Volvo and Nissan Diesel, Australasian operations. This was completed as part of the impending take-over of Nissan Diesel Japan by Volvo, and involved a complete assessment of staff and manufacturing capacities, distribution/dealer network, market penetration, sales and profitability, along with market projections for the next five years.

Following the proposed company take-over by Volvo extending to Australia, the sudden death of a close friend, and forecast changes within the structure of our respective companies, my wife and I decided to take early retirement.

We moved to ‘Condarra’ in August 2006 and became active in a number of community groups. I spent my formative years, and have spent around fifty five years, living in small rural communities.    I am very familiar with the community support structures that exist in the ‘bush’. As a former farmer, and a successful manager in the corporate world, you tend not to be idle for any length of time.

In Swanpool there were seventeen community groups for a population of only six hundred people. I rejoined the CFA in 2007 after a break of fifteen years. In 2009 I was approached to take over as Chairman of the Swanpool and District Community Development Association. I initiated a number of programs that supported and acknowledged the contribution of volunteers within the community.  We hosted the Bald Archy Exhibition from 2013 to 2017 and attracted record crowds. We put significant funding back into the community organisations that participated.  In 2018 we were not allocated dates for the Bald Archy Tour, so I created the Swanpool Creative Recycled Art Prize, or SCRAP. I wrote the initial Community Plan for Swanpool in 2011 and the later update in 2018, ‘pro bono’. I also wrote business plans for the Swanpool Cinema and Benalla U3A, both ‘pro bono’.

During the initial period of ‘retirement’, I became involved with the Benalla U3A and two of the local history groups.  I have written a number of history books on the region, the latest being the history of the first Engineer for QANTAS, who was born and had his early education in Benalla.

I often stop and ask myself, “How the hell did I ever have time to go to work?”


Barry O’Connor
​July 2023.

​Each January, as an avid tennis loving couch potato during the Australian Open, I pause to reflect on nature of ‘retirement’.  Players retire from matches, with injury, sometimes recurrent and career ending.  Whether and when players who have been at the forefront, have hit great heights during their careers will retire, are recurrent themes.  Will Raffa retire after this particular injury, or overcome it through absence from the game for healing and rehabilitation?  Occasionally, like Ash Barty, a player will decide that other life goals must take precedence.  At other times, people return from retirement, such as Carolyn Wozniaki after having children.  Sometimes retirement is celebrated at a particular time.  At other times retirement is a quieter, often sadder process, as selectors choose younger players; people move back to the Challenger circuit, play socially or volunteer at the local fund-raising sausage sizzle.  Some players move on to show an at times unexpected talent as tennis coaches.

One of my first ‘retirements’, from ballet dancing, was caused by physical injury. ‘Toe dancing’ too early had led to painful, overdeveloped arches in my feet.  However I went on to enjoy 'modern dance', where we danced in bare feet.

As a teacher with the Education Department in secondary schools for 20 years, I had many ‘leavings’, from different school contexts, many movings on, rarely staying in a school for more than three years.  I became accustomed to ‘letting go’ of work roles, of communities.  

My first retirement or ‘significant leaving’ from teaching in Victoria’s secondary schools came at 42 when I decided to retire from teaching to pursue my earlier career preference of social work.   I was amongst those given a farewell speech Flemington High School at the end of 1990, with another farewell speech at Melbourne University where I worked two days a week on secondment in the Education Faculty. Going through some farewell cards recently I reminisced as I read through the names of those who had signed cards at the time.  This wasn’t a sad or demoralising retirement; I had achieved my goals in teaching and was ready for a new challenge as a social worker.

I still have unresolved issues about a ‘did she jump or was she pushed’ departure from a challenging position as a social worker in a large employment related bureaucracy (say no more!) after a year’s work.   Always been glad I had ‘dipped my foot into the waters’ of this role, it wasn’t a ‘good fit’ for my preferred working style.   It took time to heal from feeling I had not quite made the grade, something which hadn’t happened to me before. However, some jobs aren’t a good fit and the ‘social control’ role of social workers in this bureaucracy was an anethema to me.  There was also an unresolvable fit with my immediate manager! 

There can be an element of unresolved trauma if transitioning to retirement from a somewhat toxic workplace, but also a sense of relief.  I had a later glimpse of the complexity of retirement when I returned to my teaching position at TAFE from long service leave in 2010.   Knowing I would be returning I had worked hard to leave timetables to work like clockwork until I returned. However, the new head of our department in Shepparton, and the person who replaced me as coordinator in Wangaratta, seemed to have assumed that I wouldn’t be returning.  I returned to find they felt they had to ‘recreate the wheel’, turning cartwheels to understand and coordinate the courses I was responsible at two campuses.  In the process, they had developed a sense of ownership, and seemed surprised when I returned.  I felt animosity, rather than welcome on my return, for at least the first three months, yet knew that I needed to complete the final two years before I became eligible for the pension. 

I guess that’s what happens in a football team… when the regular player returns, the person or people who had been possibly enjoying and achieving in the role feel displaced; the return of the permanent incumbent to them a two-edged sword.

I survived the challenges faced, persevering in a job I treasured, however always with a clear plan to retire formally at year’s end, two months after my 65th birthday.   It was time.  I felt that my role had been worthwhile, however, I was tired.  I’d become tired of adjusting to constant changes in a decade of spending cutbacks in the TAFE sector, was frustrated by ‘micromanagement’ and, with my sister, was supporting my soon to turn 100 mother who was in a Benalla nursing home and who was of great importance to me. 
  
I didn’t want to be managed anymore!  I wanted to slow down, and I wanted to manage myself!


Beverley Lee
​August 2023

​In June 2007 my husband and I decided to retire and leave Melbourne behind. We had already purchased a house on two acres in 2000. The property was about eight kilometres beyond Tatong towards Tolmie, and we had planned this to be our last move. We had planted trees in the bare hilly paddock and the garden was a work in progress. The location was idyllic, being surrounded by farmland and the Holland Creek, across the road from us, which supplied us with water. Our neighbours were welcoming and so we settled down to a quiet life.

​Unfortunately, my mother became seriously ill in Ireland and so a quick trip to see her was organised.  I was fortunate to spend her last few days with her and to attend her funeral before returning home.
 
We then set about seeing some more of our own back yard. This involved a trip on the Ghan from Adelaide to Darwin, with a stop off in Alice Spring so we could visit Uluru.  No, we didn't climb the Rock but circled it by foot. This trip inspired us to plan a camping expedition up through the Centre and down the West Coast. 
 
We made a few trips overseas to catch up with family and visit new countries, as well as old favourites such as Paris.  
 
In between we continued living in the quiet rural surrounds, with shopping trips to Benalla and occasional outings to Swanpool Cinema.  We were content with our lot, until I got the Volunteer bug and joined the crew at Vinnies.
 
Unfortunately, we also aged.  My arthritic hands made gardening a painful chore and not the pleasure it had been. Thus, we decided to sell our property.  We made the decision to move to the coast and ended up in Portarlington. At the time there was only a small permanent population, and we were surrounded by empty houses, which was a gentle introduction to urban living. Of course, over the summer the population swelled, and life became more hectic.  With ongoing development increasing in pace, we decided to head back to Benalla.  However, this time, we settled in the town.
 
Now, several years later, we are well settled into retirement.  There is time to take up causes, whether by writing to politicians, joining protests or visiting people in detention. Between Volunteering, U3A and ‘life in general’, I often wonder how I managed to fit employment into my schedule. Yes, I do have a garden but on a smaller more manageable scale.
 
To me retirement has been a wonderful surprise. I had wondered if it would be boring. Instead, each day is a gift to be cherished.
 
 
Marg McCrohan
October 2022

*This story was originally submitted for the topic 'This (....) Life' in October 2022 - Marg chose to write about 'This (Retirement) Life'.  Her story inspired this topic, so is reprinted here.