Golden Years, Golden Moments: The Power of Having Something to Look Forward To

You made it to retirement, now what? Having something to look forward to may be just the ticket. We all do better when the days aren’t cookie-cutter scheduled, like work may have been or eventually become. Think back on being six and waiting for Christmas or your birthday.  You started counting down the days. You felt the excitement in the air. Each day closer was another day richer: one day was balloons or a tree; the next day decorations and packages; and the day of the event was a cake or a filled stocking and a spread of all of your favorite treats. Big deal days like these are hard to beat, especially as the years pass and the special occasion magic fades.  One’s social circle may decrease after working several decades and be compounded with a smaller group of go-to gal pals if retirement is accompanied by a divorce, a deceased spouse, and/or recently lost loved ones. This means fewer people remain that you know for getting together. You may have given your all to your career and are left with fewer non-work-related friends; you may feel that the people you can reach out to are more far than...