Challenge #7
Our days are full of things we take for granted. We have the internet, which gives us a window on just about everything we can imagine. We have books, movies, and television which narrow our focus a bit, but still show us a wild variety of fantastic (and sometimes scary) things. We have cars and other types of transportation to carry us around our real world. We have many conveniences which help us cook our food, heat our homes, and perform a thousand other tasks we rarely think about. We have our incomes. And we have our own bodies and minds.
The inability to use any of these things could hamper your personal independence. As we age, some of them start slipping away from us, but these things could be lost at any age. What do you depend on most – and what would you most hate losing? (Ideas: the ability to drive, to use the internet, to travel…)
As part of my retirement theme, I offer this weekly Thursday “Future Challenge” to get people of all ages thinking in general about their futures and/or retirement. Each challenge goes with a post of my own on the same general topic. Hopefully we’ll start some interesting discussions!
If you’d like to share what you think, or post on it, that’s great – and I’d love it if you’d share those thoughts in a post or comment (please tag posts TRS Future Challenge and link to this post) so others can also see them.
If you choose not to share them, that’s fine too – but with any luck, you’ll still gain some insight on where you’re headed (or would like to be), and how you can get the most out of your own journey.
To see my own take on this week’s challenge, see my post Facing a Scary Moment.
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The Retiring Sort 
I think my eyes are the most precious thing to me. My gran was blind for many years before she died at 94. I’m so grateful for today’s marvelous medical expertise, which has improved my sight beyond all my expectations. 🙂
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We really do live in amazing times! Glad your vision is healthy and clear! 😉
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I always say getting old is not great. I have been visiting my aunt in a nursing home and even though one could not have picked a better place other than your own home, I can see myself in the fate of those hapless souls. Slowly I am starting to feel my joint pains as I walk to/from my train to work and I just push myself hoping against all hope, as I am not getting any younger, that my joints will get used to the exercise.
Am glad to hear that your eye problem is treatable. We cannot take things for granted anymore. Not like when we were in our twenties.
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Thanks for stopping by to share your thoughts. As we cared for our Mom in her final months, I thought these same things – seeing myself in twenty or so years. At this point in my life, I’me beginning to understand there’s very little I should be taking for granted. My current assignment is figuring out how to finance continued travel while my beloved and I are still able to enjoy it. I wish you a great many new adventures, too!
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I have wanted to be a part of your future challenges since you started them. It seems like every time I begin to write a post, disturbances of a third world kind interfere. lol I’ve learned to be grateful for many things while living in a third world country, and I don’t take too much for granted anymore. The past two days we’ve been without electricity and water. I can deal with the inconveniences..it was sort of like camping in our house. But, if I ever lose my creativity and positive attitude, then I’m lost. The ability to think outside of the box and look at the bright side are the most important aspects of life to me. Without them, I have no future. Thanks for giving me an opportunity to ponder my future. It looks bright..even lacking electricity. 🙂
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LOL – we’ve been without electricity for days (even weeks, once) each of the past few years due to hurricanes and winter storms, here in the good ol’ USA. It’s inconvenient, but we were at least prepared. I hope you have, and keep, power now – and that you maintain your sharp mind and creativity for many, many years to come!
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We retired very early due to my husbands ill health. I had a high pressure sales job and when I stopped working I wondered how I would fill my days. Now I wake at 7 go to bed at midnight or after with just a short siesta mid afternoon. I write, paint, cook, “play on the internet” as my husband calls it, travel and walk with my friends. Oh yes and body board
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Good for you! I hope your husband is well enough to enjoy some of our independence with you! 😉
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For me it would be the loss of ability to drive. I probably rely on it too much, but without it I couldn’t get to all those fabulous places to photograph! (Although I’d probably make a lot of new friends as I people come to the rescue and help! A friend of mine couldn’t drive for six months after she broke her ankle. Friends rallied around big time. She nearly went insane too!)
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There is something so liberating about being able to drive anywhere, anytime! I agree, this would be a tough thing to give up. Thanks so much for stopping in to comment!
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If I lost the ability to read that would be difficult to manage.
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So true – everything from books, to the internet, to food labels and medicine bottles. It would be hard, depending on others for reading. Thanks for your comment!
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Retire? Do artists retire? 🙂 I cannot imagine ever NOT painting or drawing or creating! I’m lucky that each day is filled with enriching activities, though losing my vision would shatter that low-stress lifestyle.
Z
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You are very lucky that you love what you do so much, and that you do it so well – here’s hoping you continue for a long time to come! 😉
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with art, it’s as if each painting preps us for the next one… it’s an ongoing process. thanks, amiga.. glad your vision problems were resolved; i commented on that one too, but the computer froze (poor connection)… i’ll try again! z
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Thanks! 😉
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