discussion # 1

One activity many retirees don't miss is professional conferences. Not only do they often come at inappropriate times, but they also involve travel and hotel expenses which may or may not be allowed in the workplace budget.
While many conferences were reinvigorating and refreshing, a few left me wondering why I had come, even if for one day. These times were usually the result of poor programs and meetings.  At other conferences, I was literally running between meetings and had little time to reflect or even eat.

The main exception is the Association of Christian Librarians(ACL).  While it does have great programming and professional emphasis, it is also a fellowship of Christians from many denominations.  As a result, many retirees or soon to be retirees would like to continue some involvement in the association.  Therefore at our last conference we started a special interest group for retirees.  For a while we are going to discuss J. I. Packer book,  Finishing our Course with Joy.

This blog will identify these discussions with the title Discussion and whenever I can get around to tagging them with RETsig. If I have permission, I will copy/paste other comments here from the group. Feel free to read or skip

First, I have some thoughts about retirement books in general as I have been browsing them.  Many seem to miss some of the aspects women encounter with retirement.  And since women live longer than men, this seems a lost marketing opportunity.  Women usually and I do stress usually are more connected to their children and other relatives well into retirement.  They are usually the keepers of the stories, although they often do not write them down. Many of the activities women engage in throughout their lives do not end at the loss of a paying job.  As a result some of the retirement issues men face may have lesser impact on most women.

Second, many of the books only glance at religious or spiritual importance in the later stages of life.  The church is a body of and for all ages, abilities, and opportunities, and as such should not limit interaction between young and old.  Believers should seize any opportunity to become better acquainted with Jesus and to increase their faith.  Peterson's book seems to pick up on this aspect better than others.

As has been mentioned in many places ( sometime, I'll do a bibliography) women who age and to a certain extent retired men become invisible in our culture.  The church and fellowships should combat this by providing ways to let everyone's light shine.