My Dad came into town for his 64th birthday, mostly to see the grandkids, and we shared a meal and asked him – what do you want to do with your time when you retire?
As would any good grandfather (I think), his first answer was to spend more time with his kids and grandkids and create and share memories with them. After dessert was done and the kids ran off to play we probed him on a deeper answer.
My Dad then shared a few things and one of them was, he wants to spend time creating. “Creation brings me joy, I always want to be creating something.”
He then shared a memory he had of my Mom’s uncle who years ago, before he passed away, owned a home on a hill. The landscape was such that when visiting you would park up at the top of the hill near the garage and almost hike down the hill to get to the house. One day when my Dad was visiting my Mom’s uncle said – would you like to see my paintings? My Dad did not know he painted. They went up the hill to the garage where he had built an entire painting studio inside. This was his special and sacred creation place. It was a place my Mom’s uncle could escape the world and practice a skill and be fully present in creation.
I have written about creation before but this story and insight on how my Dad, who I deeply respect and love, wants to spend his time when he is retired resonated with me. As humans we are creators – it is inside of every one of us. When we create, we are tapping into our soul.
I am now reflecting on the question – what do I want to do with my time when I retire? And I am following it up with – what is stopping me from doing some if not all of that now?
My invitation to you is to take a few minutes to also ponder these questions and write down your answers. I want creation to be a key component of how I spend my time now and in the future.
