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| The Best Post-Prince Ever |
A few months ago CNN
reported that "In a remarkable press conference marked by grace and devoid
of self-pity, former President Jimmy Carter said that four spots of cancer had
spread to his brain." Mr. Carter is
a Democrat and was the 39th president of the United States. Then, sometime over
the holidays I heard a friend of mine who I know to be a conservative
Republican say, "Isn't it a shame about Jimmy Carter." Even though she did not agree with all of
what Mr. Carter had done during his time as president, she was empathizing with
his situation. She then said something
that I thought was very interesting. She
said that she believed he had been the best "post-president"
ever. I interpreted what she said as
meaning he had been the best retired president.
Agreeing with what
she said, another person in the room recounted that she had once worked on a Habitat For Humanity
project with President Carter and Rosalind, and how it surprised her when she
was working inside one of the houses being built she looked out an unfinished
window hole in the wall and realized that Rosalind was working just on the
other side of the wall from her.
Have you noticed how
the ex-presidents of our country when they retire from that very stressful
office seem to follow very diverse paths in retirement. They seem to follow their individual interest
and passions in life. Some have worked
on charitable endeavors. Some have gone
back to their previous occupations such as farming. Some play golf. Some even stay involved in politics. John Quincy Adams actually was elected to
nine terms in the U.S. House of Representative after he retired as president,
and used that platform to fight slavery.
Thinking about the
"post-president" thing I began to consider that retirement is the
perfect chance to be the best "post something". We have not all been president, but we have
all been several things that we will not be again after retirement. To be the best post-whatever we were before
retirement will require that we follow our interests and passions in retirement
and give something new our best.
This got me to thinking about my own 'retirement.' The truth is, I don't think I'm retired at all. I had no career to retire from. I've done a little of this and a little of that. And it occurs to me that what I've actually been doing is preparing myself for the career I started about four years ago -- Writer.
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