Accomplishment is a wonderful feeling – the successful achievement of a task. I experience it every morning after my run (3,847 consecutive days). I’m feeling it now as I write this 1000th post to my blog. In retirement, I reflect on them daily and I’m surrounded by memories of them on the walls and shelves in my office. Plaques, photos, certificates, badges, trophies, mementos, diplomas, ribbons, books, pins, and documents mark my 67 years of life. Today is just another milestone, as I realize that my accomplishments in later life are comparatively small, overshadowed by those of my spouse, son, grandchildren, and friends, I see retirement as my greatest achievement in life, crowning all those years of school, parenthood, and career. I enjoy seeing friends join me at the top and have great empathy for those who never reach this wrung on the ladder. I can now sit back and watch others fight the battles of life, knowing that somehow I got through that tangled web. I’m quite sure I wouldn’t want to do it again. 

In the next 10, 20, or 30 years of my life, I’ll watch the grandkids grow up, hoping that my health and investments keep me comfortable. Most of my personal achievements will center around destinations on my bucket list. The pages of the 1000 Places to See before I Die calendar continue to flash by showing places that I have never seriously dreamed of visiting like Alberta, Canada; Bergen, Norway; Acre, Israel; Singapore; Sri Lanka and Brazil. Every once in a while, there are pictures of places I’ve been to like Sanibel Island, Florida; the St. Louis Arch; and England. There are so many places to see, limited only by time and money. These are the accomplishments that I look forward to in retirement. 

As we prepare for our short visit to San Francisco, I appreciate my “pit stops” at home between adventures. Yesterday, I made my first acupuncture appointment, hoping to relieve some lower back discomfort. I felt like a pin cushion or maybe a porcupine as I relaxed, and even dozed off a bit, in the therapy room. I was mildly exhausted afterwards, but have yet to experience any relief of my stiffness. I have a second meeting next week, plus a chiropractor session. I still have no pain – only stiffness and discomfort – but would like to see improved flexibility. It makes me feel old and not as anxious to journey around the world. 

An impromptu “Leadership Meeting” has been organized today, since my fellow retirees have other plans on our traditional Friday. I also have to meet a realtor later this afternoon to discuss our plans of moving into a rental property, providing a little more flexibility in our future travel plans. It’s the next stage of retirement, as my wife eventually plans to join me. In the meantime, we would like to further pay-down debt, relieve ourselves of ownership responsibilities here in Portland, and decide where we’d like to spend the rest of our lives together. Once we accomplish this, we’ll have the freedom to see some of these unexplored destinations on our bucket lists.