The Party

Retirement Parties are awesome!  They are happy, feel good events, especially if you are the Guest of Honor!  My Retirement Party was Friday evening.  It is no secret that I have been struggling with this decision all year.  My mind was put at ease Friday evening when I saw how happy all of the other retirees were.  Not only did they look happy, but they kept talking about how happy they are being retired.  Not one retiree said they were bored or unhappy.

Everyone should have a retirement party when they retire.  It's a great way to end your career.  Hearing your co-workers talk about how much they are going to miss you and how wonderful you were at your job means a lot to someone who has a passion for their profession.  As I have mentioned before, ending your teaching career isn't just retiring from your "job," it's leaving a way of life that was a calling - a passion for something you love.

My family was at my retirement party.  When you work with the same people for a long time, they become your 2nd family.  Friday night, my 1st family met my second family.  My real family put names with faces of my work family and vice versa.  As my work family spoke about all of the hours that I had put into my job as Association President and teacher, I began to wonder what my real family was thinking.  Were they proud of me or were they thinking about all of the time I spent away from them?  I think it was a little of both.

I believe it's time to make it up to them.  Starting 18 days from now.