I think of myself in my mid-20s, the age of my own daughters now and the last time I was single.
Twenty-something me would be thrilled to see me just being happier than I have been in years because I'm living the way I want to live, no second guessing.
Yes, my husband of 30 years died. Yes, that did trigger three years of counseling to understand what I had been through -- and to reconcile a couple of other things that had been rattling around in my head.
But I emerged stronger and more sure of myself and what I want, and more confident than ever in my own skin.
I love the life I'm building in retirement. I am expressing myself in ways I never had before -- and shocking some people (older, stick-in-the-mud brothers who never liked my approach to life anyway) in the process.
I am proud that I can do this for myself and be a role model for my own daughters, showing them you are never too old to reinvent yourself.
Oh, I love this so much — your younger self must be standing there with her hands on her hips saying, “Well it’s about damn time!”
What you’ve written here is exactly the spirit of what I want women to know — that reinvention isn’t rebellion, it’s remembering. You’re not breaking rules, you’re breaking free.
And the fact that your daughters get to see you doing this? That’s legacy work right there. 🩷
We don’t retire, we rewire™ — and you’re living proof.
this is a beautiful statement Mary. I back you up all the way.
And perhaps you should consider it a compliment that You have shaken upthose brothers who want you to sit quietly and fold your hands in your lap and Go along with the program. Ha ha ha.
What would your younger self be delighted to see you doing today?
I think of myself in my mid-20s, the age of my own daughters now and the last time I was single.
Twenty-something me would be thrilled to see me just being happier than I have been in years because I'm living the way I want to live, no second guessing.
Yes, my husband of 30 years died. Yes, that did trigger three years of counseling to understand what I had been through -- and to reconcile a couple of other things that had been rattling around in my head.
But I emerged stronger and more sure of myself and what I want, and more confident than ever in my own skin.
I love the life I'm building in retirement. I am expressing myself in ways I never had before -- and shocking some people (older, stick-in-the-mud brothers who never liked my approach to life anyway) in the process.
I am proud that I can do this for myself and be a role model for my own daughters, showing them you are never too old to reinvent yourself.
Oh, I love this so much — your younger self must be standing there with her hands on her hips saying, “Well it’s about damn time!”
What you’ve written here is exactly the spirit of what I want women to know — that reinvention isn’t rebellion, it’s remembering. You’re not breaking rules, you’re breaking free.
And the fact that your daughters get to see you doing this? That’s legacy work right there. 🩷
We don’t retire, we rewire™ — and you’re living proof.
this is a beautiful statement Mary. I back you up all the way.
And perhaps you should consider it a compliment that You have shaken upthose brothers who want you to sit quietly and fold your hands in your lap and Go along with the program. Ha ha ha.