Hi Toni and others about to make this move,
I am sending this to the list because there are probably a number of members about
to retire and I
can offer a personal insight into what it is like, particularly for those who are
not going to spend
the rest of their lives cruising the world on some luxury liner.
I found that, for me, 'retirement' just meant a change in direction and just
because I am no longer
based in a particular school, I am really still actively involved in the profession
in other ways.
You may find the same thing and so remaining a member of your professional lists
still remains the
best professional learning there is and it is delivered to your home, daily, for
free.
I have also found that even though I am doing a heap of other things in the field -
three books
about to be published; mentoring uni students; marking masters papers; writing
units and articles
for other publications - that not having to deal with the daily detail has given me
time to reflect
on the big picture of what I did and why and so I am able to contribute to the
lists using that
experience and expertise as a base. This reflection means I am getting to the
grassroots of what I
believe and value about education in general and teacher librarianship in
particular, so I am
learning more about the essence of me. After 35 years in the profession, what I
have learned and
done has really shaped who I am and by being in a position to still share some of
that knowledge
allows for some deep soul searching.
I 'retired' at 55 because you can here, for a variety of reasons, but I was busier
in the last six
months than ever. So still remaining a member of lists like this has allowed me to
wind down and
start to wean myself from work gradually, physically and mentally. While there is
always the dream
of all that we will do once we don't have to go to work each day, retirement is
nevertheless a
dramatic change of lifestyle and for those who feel they are defined by the job
they do this can be
quite disconcerting. You are no longer employed so you no longer see yourself as
having any
professional status. It's a bit like being a stay-at-home mum - a critical role
but because it
isn't income-earning it's not as valued as it should be. What you might have
contributed in the
past isn't acknowledged, you believe it's the fact that you are not contributing
now that is judged.
So retirement is a change of mindset as well as practice and it is not an overnight
thing
-yesterday I went to work; today I don't have to so all is well with the world.
You need to give
yourself time and opportunity to adjust.
If you have a particular passion that is going to allow you to make a clean break
and start in a new
direction then you probably neither want or need to stay on the list. But if you
are not in a
position to go part-time and gradually move into your new life (think of going
cold-turkey from
cigarettes) you may find that just keeping tabs on things through the list is one
way of helping
you make that adjustment. You may find, like me. that retirement means redirection
because others
recognise your expertise and new opportunities open up and so the list remains
vital, or you may
find that you make the transition to a completely new life quite smoothly and you
will know when it
is time to make the break.
The impact of retirement, physically and mentally, is different for each of us -
you have to
acknowledge you are ageing and there is more of your life behind you than in front
of you - and we
each must decide how much connection and contact with our working lives we will
need to make the
adjustment. It's taken me three years and I am slowly starting to back off, having
told my husband
that, from now on, anything new offered to me has to be personally new and
challenging rather than
just repeating past experiences. So don't be alarmed if you are still 'tied' some
time down the
track - you will know when it is time to start making the break because you will no
longer enjoy it
or want to do it. And the luxury is you can let it go.
Best wishes to all those making this life change.
Barbara
Barbara Braxton
Teacher Librarian
COOMA NSW 2630
AUSTRALIA
E. barbara.288@bigpond.com
Together we learn from each other
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