Snowbirds Living in the Philippines : I Will Be 86 Years Young Tomorrow-The Sunset of My Life

Saturday, December 19, 2020

I Will Be 86 Years Young Tomorrow-The Sunset of My Life

Tomorrow, December 20 will be my 86th birthday. I Thank the Lord for all His Blessings all these years! There will be no Party or Family Get Together due to Covid-19. David and I will just order Lobster Dinner via Doordash*

My 80th Birthday Celebration and Family Get Together-Six Years Ago

I will be 86 years old tomorrow, December 20. This is the season of winter and sunset of my life. There will be no big celebration because we are still in the LOCKDOWN mode due to Covid-19. However there will be recollections of my life ( see sites listed below for details). Here's a video ( poem) that I can identify about the winter of my life.

This time of my life I will also call the Sunset of My Life. Here's another video about Sunsets that reminds me of my eight decades and six years of my life.

Here's one of my favorite poems on aging by Samuel Taylor Coleridge, ‘Youth and Age’.

When I was young?—Ah, woful When!
Ah! for the change ’twixt Now and Then!
This breathing house not built with hands,
This body that does me grievous wrong,
O’er aery cliffs and glittering sands,
How lightly then it flashed along:—
Like those trim skiffs, unknown of yore,
On winding lakes and rivers wide,
That ask no aid of sail or oar,
That fear no spite of wind or tide!
Nought cared this body for wind or weather
When Youth and I lived in’t together …

‘You’re only as old as you feel’ might be a rough paraphrase of the main sentiment driving this poem, by one of English literature’s leading Romantic poets.

Here's a short article on the Afterglows of the Sunset of our Lives

https://marinduquemyislandparadise.blogspot.com/2016/02/2016-update-afterglows-in-sunset-of-our.html

https://marinduquemyislandparadise.blogspot.com/2017/01/my-childhood-polio-is-catching-up-with.html

Here's another video projecting my hope and goals as I enjoy the remaining years of my life-The Beauty in the Winter Garden

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNwZtJLSpyo

And last but not least is a summary of my autobiography:

https://marinduquemyislandparadise.blogspot.com/search?q=my+autobiography+update

Chateau Du Mer Main House at Christmas Time, Boac, Marinduque, Philippines

* Thank you Dinah and Dodie for your gift cards for Red Lobster and Doordash respectively.

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Joys of Retirement

I have been retired from USFDA since 2002. At first, I feel I have lost my identity as an individual or have lost my contribution to society. However, within a few weeks all these feelings were gone. It started when my wife and I started baby sitting one of our grandchildren. As some economics professor states: "Your children are your capital investments, but your grandchildren are your profits. That is why you love your grandchildren more than your children". I really agree with the statement. Retirement also gives you lots of time to do things you like to do, such as your hobbies and of course travel. In my case, I turned my hobby of gardening and landscaping into a small business in the Philippines. This endeavor was planned about five years before 2002. That year my wife and I started construction of our retirement home in Boac, Marinduque , Philippines. The next year we built a beach house, followed by a Conference Hall two years later. Needless to say, planning and executing the landscaping was a challenge and very enjoyable. With the help of local labor, I not only enjoy the time gardening and landscaping, but also help improved the economic situation of the province by providing work and jobs to the local residents. With plenty of time, I have engaged into two specific activities as follows: First, I created a website for my small business. By trial and error, I created and design the website, www.chateaudumer.com I have never been a computer nerd or expert. But with plenty of time and patience, the fruits of my labor could be enjoyed if you visit the website above. The second activity, I have not done before was to utilize on-line activities, such as shopping, paying bills ( save you stamps) and playing computer games in the Internet. I really enjoyed playing duplicate bridge on line. You play with players all over the world and can chat in between games. But be careful, you are not spending too much time in the computer. It is very addictive. With a lots of time, my wife and I devoted more time on our favorite humanitarian project. For the last 15 years, we have been involved with medical mission to the province of Marinduque. For details please visit the website: www.marinduqueinternational.org As a summary, the joy one gets on retirement is very specific for an individual. Some enjoy their free time by learning new activities, getting involved with humanitarian projects or spending more time with their grandchildren. Others hate it, since they missed their former jobs and co-workers. Others with no children still enjoy retirement by traveling, turning their hobbies into business or more community involvement. Of course those that retire and hate it, is believe to die earlier than those that enjoy their retirement years. So, plan your retirement as early as you can. The happier you are on retirement, the longer you will live.