RETIREMENT

Recently, a friend asked me if I felt depressed about not being able to retire. She, like me, works as an independent contractor, has no retirement benefits, and no real savings. We both own homes, which can be seen as a debt more than an asset. I'm 63. She is 58. We're both professionals; she is a nurse who manages disability cases. I am an educator in private practice. We both have specialized degrees and command a decent hourly fee. You'd think that would put us both in good stead. On the other hand, we're both single, both raised our daughters on our own, and both live from month to month. Our discretionary income was never discretionary. Two incomes would have made a difference. Children are expensive. And now that my children are grown, the expenses seem to have grown, rather than diminished. How does one gracefully exit the hampster wheel without tumbling into a financial mess? 

Frankly, I had never given retirement much thought; it isn't in my realm of possibility. Nor had I ever thought of my work life as depressing. Working as a literacy specialist and writing coach has brought me joy and given me a reason to get up every morning. Of course, now that she mentioned it, my friend has me thinking about what comes next. Will I ever be able to retire? Will my dreams of travel adventures ever come to fruition? What fun it would be to see the world with a loving companion! How romantic. But with this overburdened work life, what are the odds of my meeting someone with whom I would feel comfortable enough to share my life, at home and abroad? It's a numbers game all around. Money and time, time and money. 
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