Is Life More of a Job?

Life more of a Job
@Shiva49 (26774)
Singapore
June 18, 2021 9:01am CST
Now I am into retirement and should be really retired, but am I? Yes, I have more free time; no need to do others’ bidding and sort of my own boss. I had felt that way for the first time in my life. However, as long as life exists in me I cannot wash off my hands off and live inside a cocoon. Okay, that may not be what life is about but then we still are answerable to family, society. Our physical survival can never be far away from our thoughts. We need to put food on our table and that really consumes some time! Maybe, it is always at the back of our minds. We are not like other species to eat off nature directly. Lots of work involved. That “eats” into our time too. Born a human is not that easy after all – birds look to have it easier and, maybe, animals too. No need to worry about healthcare facilities unless they are pets who are pampered! Do they also look forward to retirement? There could be a reason for our supposed plight. "An idle mind is a devil’s workshop" is more pertinent to us as others seem to know how to spend their spare time without getting weighed down by it. Not to forget, our thoughts about afterlife that can give us sleepless nights! Whether we really make the cut as everyone could have some lingering doubts! What is your approach to life? Image: Life from free image site Pexels
22 people like this
18 responses
@prinzcy (32305)
• Malaysia
18 Jun 21
I want to retire but I need to make sure I have enough money first.
4 people like this
@Shiva49 (26774)
• Singapore
18 Jun 21
Yes, that is vital. Once we retire, tough to get back to work, so better to make sure we have enough to last.
3 people like this
@prinzcy (32305)
• Malaysia
19 Jun 21
@sjvg1976 we have retirement money. The government make it compulsory to all to be given retirement fund. Even for contract worker.
3 people like this
@sjvg1976 (41290)
• Delhi, India
19 Jun 21
@prinzcy that's the thing which keeps me worrying . As being in a private organisation we don't have a pension after the retirement so it's very difficult to manage the things when you are retired.
3 people like this
@DianneN (247186)
• United States
18 Jun 21
I don’t feel that way at all. I find life to be a joy and love living it. We have clothes on our backs, a roof over our head, plenty of food to eat, and no money worries. All I worry about is our health and safety and little things in life, because that’s my nature.
2 people like this
@DianneN (247186)
• United States
18 Jun 21
@Shiva49 Attitude has everything to do with how we choose to live.
2 people like this
@Shiva49 (26774)
• Singapore
18 Jun 21
@DianneN . It decides our altitude too! But I like to remember - the higher we rise, the harder is the fall! So need some fine balancing act like in ice skating!
2 people like this
@Shiva49 (26774)
• Singapore
18 Jun 21
Happy for you. I was just thinking aloud about life and how and where we fit in, and what our real role is. Our attitude decides in the end over and above everything else.
2 people like this
@BelleStarr (61101)
• United States
21 Jun 21
I have found that after we retired out life immediately filled up with things to do that we always wanted to do and I am busier than ever.
2 people like this
@Shiva49 (26774)
• Singapore
21 Jun 21
True for me too. As I was easing into retirement eleven years ago, I took to online sites. That meant I had a comfort zone to spend as much time I had wanted. I recall a comment here that he is so busy after retirement that he wonders how he ever found time to work earlier!
2 people like this
@BelleStarr (61101)
• United States
22 Jun 21
@Shiva49 I find that to be very true, I don't have enough time to work.
1 person likes this
@db20747 (43440)
• Washington, District Of Columbia
20 Jun 21
Yes, putting food on the table is time consuming and something has to be on that table everyday. Work is a person's life
2 people like this
@Shiva49 (26774)
• Singapore
20 Jun 21
That is what I had in mind. We have to work harder to get things in order to eat unlike other species. And that goes on till our last day. And life is getting more hectic too.
2 people like this
@db20747 (43440)
• Washington, District Of Columbia
20 Jun 21
@Shiva49 not easy
2 people like this
@Nevena83 (65277)
• Serbia
18 Jun 21
I wish I was a cat, I think cats definitely have the most relaxed life.
2 people like this
@Shiva49 (26774)
• Singapore
19 Jun 21
Maybe birds soaring high at will. I think no real enemies for them and they seem to get along well too; unlike us amassing weapons to destroy the planet many times over! And we think we are the most intelligent of all species!
2 people like this
@Shiva49 (26774)
• Singapore
20 Jun 21
@Nevena83 I tend to think so too. We are given faculties to value add with our wise choices but we use them to hit each other below the belt, selective interpretation of scriptures to suit our selfish pursuits, overlook inconvenient truths. All the time we know what we do is against God's will. We want to make merry and live as if there is no tomorrow. And some have a view we are after all human, and all will be forgiven!
2 people like this
@Nevena83 (65277)
• Serbia
19 Jun 21
@Shiva49 And I think we humans are the worst kind on earth.
2 people like this
@miftha (1621)
• Bekasi, Indonesia
18 Jun 21
I think life is a struggle for happiness
2 people like this
@Shiva49 (26774)
• Singapore
18 Jun 21
I think happiness and sadness alternate. It helps if we have clear goals in life that we are comfortable with.
2 people like this
@miftha (1621)
• Bekasi, Indonesia
18 Jun 21
@ Shiva49 Yes. You right
2 people like this
@Shiva49 (26774)
• Singapore
20 Jun 21
@elmer21 I leave them to their own devices and just carry on. No point in losing sleep due to others actions.
2 people like this
@allknowing (137773)
• India
19 Jun 21
I have always thought work is our companion. We therefore need to get to like what we are doing.
2 people like this
@Shiva49 (26774)
• Singapore
19 Jun 21
For me, it depended on the work I had to do. Most times, I had bottlenecks in the form of colleagues who stood in the way though they were a minority. They are well out of my way now and I feel like a free bird though brought down to earth with a thud by an unseen enemy stalking us and holding us to ransom!
2 people like this
@kanuck1 (4434)
19 Jun 21
At this time, I try to be the best I can be and await a better life soon whether I live or whether I die.
2 people like this
@Shiva49 (26774)
• Singapore
20 Jun 21
That is my lifestyle too, be the best I can be and leave the rest as they are beyond me.
2 people like this
@sjvg1976 (41290)
• Delhi, India
18 Jun 21
I want to retire from work but I cannot as I don't have sufficient money to live without a job. Yes there is life other than the job one should live a balanced life to be happy in life
2 people like this
@sjvg1976 (41290)
• Delhi, India
18 Jun 21
@Shiva49 yes we have to be flexible. I also have tried to make my life balanced but sometimes the things get abnormal.
2 people like this
@Shiva49 (26774)
• Singapore
18 Jun 21
I worked for forty-five years though at a slower pace during the last fifteen years. I made sure to have just enough to last my remaining years. I went for balance in my life - office time for office work and at home for family. Of course, we have to be a flexible at times.
2 people like this
@RebeccasFarm (90464)
• Arvada, Colorado
20 Jun 21
Yes and mine is full time not much rest
2 people like this
@Shiva49 (26774)
• Singapore
21 Jun 21
Something or other crops up and I am challenged to get things under control again. Then the daily chore that knows no respite. Online sites like myLot are a real relief and solace
1 person likes this
@janethwayne (5191)
• Philippines
19 Jun 21
I think if you want to have a good living then you will really work hard to reach the goal. But if you want a simple kind and don't aim too much for the future then your suffering to strive is less too. And don't have enough too.
2 people like this
@Shiva49 (26774)
• Singapore
19 Jun 21
Agreed, we reap what we sow. We have to make a considered choice, reviewing it from time to time, and set our goals to suit our temperament and personality. One choice I made is to live to suit my temperament and not be unduly influenced by others comments, interference, lifestyle.
2 people like this
@porwest (92588)
• United States
18 Jun 21
I don't look at retirement as the end of work, or the end of challenges. It is simply a new beginning, with more time to explore new opportunities and challenges. It's what makes life worth living IMO.
2 people like this
@Shiva49 (26774)
• Singapore
18 Jun 21
Good, that is positive outlook. I am retired for three years and enjoying my time except for the pandemic curbing lifestyle as we knew it. I find a lot to do during my free time outside of work that is more related to the basics of survival and no more to earn a living. This is is a nice phase to be in that I was dreaming of earlier.
2 people like this
@porwest (92588)
• United States
21 Jun 21
@Shiva49 I have always said that part of what will happen to fuel the enjoyment for me is my desire to travel and that I have hobbies, and so I would never run out of things to do.
2 people like this
@CarolDM (203422)
• Nashville, Tennessee
18 Jun 21
I try to live each day as happy as possible. Keeping my memoirs right beside me, hoping for a reunion and afterlife one day.
2 people like this
@Shiva49 (26774)
• Singapore
18 Jun 21
That is what I hope too. I can feel those departed near me at times, in dreams, though the connection is fleeting.
2 people like this
@CarolDM (203422)
• Nashville, Tennessee
18 Jun 21
@Shiva49 I welcome the sense of my loved ones any time. It keeps me going.
2 people like this
@aidels (274)
• Philippines
18 Jun 21
A good question. A deep question. If I may, Desiderata by Max Ehrmann has always been helpful to me:
https://mwkworks.com/desiderata.html
2 people like this
@Shiva49 (26774)
• Singapore
18 Jun 21
Thanks for the link. Very meaningful and thought provoking
2 people like this
@aidels (274)
• Philippines
18 Jun 21
@Shiva49 You're welcome. It really is quite the read.
2 people like this
• China
23 Jun 21
I have retired for more than 10 years and live on pension.Now I lead a free and easy life and hardly trouble myself about anything .
1 person likes this
• China
24 Jun 21
@Shiva49 May you lead a happy life in your later years !
1 person likes this
@Shiva49 (26774)
• Singapore
23 Jun 21
Nice to hear that. I am also retired for about three years now. Let is enjoy this stage on our lives.
1 person likes this
@Shiva49 (26774)
• Singapore
24 Jun 21
@changjiangzhibin89 Thank you, may you too!
1 person likes this
@prashu228 (37524)
• India
18 Jun 21
My approach , i am answerable only to my family not to anyone else or society. I agree idle mind is devils workshop so we should keep ourselves busy till we have life. worried about after life ..no not at all..if i don't attain moksha the another janam or life ..so am not worried ..
2 people like this
@Shiva49 (26774)
• Singapore
18 Jun 21
That is good to hear. You are clear about your goals and approach to life.
1 person likes this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
18 Jun 21
I'm happy to be retired and free, and I don't bother myself with thoughts of an afterlife.
2 people like this
@Shiva49 (26774)
• Singapore
18 Jun 21
I know about your outlook that you have reiterated times over. I too am like you - do what I can and then the future will take care of itself. Ups and downs enliven our lives.
2 people like this
• United States
18 Jun 21
My approach to life is that this world is a struggle and just when I think I have it figured out--something new pops up. These days I just put my trust in Jesus Christ because I know He will be with me through everyday.
2 people like this
@Shiva49 (26774)
• Singapore
18 Jun 21
Yes, whatever floats our boats. I do whatever I can and do my best for those around me.
2 people like this