The day is almost over

Sitting at home, an occasional 100meter walk and the weekly family Zoom call. Let’s face it, it’s been quite boring for the last month. Yes, I read the touching Facebook and other social-media posts about how great all the family time has been, and how everyone is enjoying working from home, at least those who still have a job, and I don’t buy it.

Responding to my question of why wake-up time is in the early afternoon, my eldest daughter responded, “Why should I wake up early? There is nothing to do.”

Personally, I have been bouncing off the walls for the last few weeks. I can’t understand why there is nothing new in the fridge every 15 minutes when I pop up to check what I can eat? As for the enhanced family time, it’s been a real treat; now back to work and school.

It’s been very hard to stick to a daily schedule. Earlier this week, I excitedly told my wife that I was so proud that I got up at 6:30 a.m., prayed, learned with my study partner via Skype for an hour and a half, took a walk and learned some more. It was 10 a.m., and then I thought to myself, what am I going to do for the next 14 hours?

That’s when I had the realization that in certain respects, our current Covid-19 lockdown is like a trial run for retirement. It’s certainly not a perfect comparison, but I think it points out aspects of retirement that need to be planned for. Just like all of us on lockdown, the question is how can people retire and find meaning or purpose in their retirement?

I can’t tell you how many times I meet with individuals who plan on retiring in a few weeks or even months, and they have no idea what they plan on doing to fill up their time.

Over these last few weeks, in our home the excitement started mounting early afternoon after the last of the children got up. The highlight of our