`Along the Road to Home

I retired from teaching in May of this year. After 43 years, it seemed the right time to finally do it. My nearly 67-year old body was getting tired and even though my heart was still in it, I knew it was the right time to quit.
This was the final picture that I took as a teacher in front of my old school, Newkirk Elementary here in Kay County, Oklahoma. The days that have already passed between that final day when I turned in my school keys and walked out the door for the last time have sped quickly by. Now more than 40 days into this new lifestyle of mine, I have had plenty of time to ponder what it is that I shall do next. For the record, I'm not sure what the answer to that is. A regular part of my day now has been to immerse myself in the printed word, either by my own journaling or reading the thought provoking devotionals that others have written. At present, I have 10 reading/writing activities going at one time and if I don't get to them all each day, I feel kind of like I'm a slacker. Every morning in the early hours of the day, even before Mike is awake, you can find me at my desk pouring over things. Once I finish a devotional or fill up the pages of a journal in its entirety, then they will go into a special box here at home where my kids will find them when they have to do the inevitable one day in the future as they clean out my things.
You know, I have found writing to actually be fun! In the front of each of my journals and the devotional books as well, I have written the same message in my own scrawl. "If you are reading this, then I am already gone. These books were things that were important to me. If I underlined it, then it meant something to me. If what I wrote, highlighted, or circled/underlined can help you in any way, then I am very happy. Love, Mom". I know that the time will soon come when everyone will go back to school, well that is everyone but me. Even though I hope to substitute a few days each month, it will not be the same and I know it. This first year out will be a different experience for me, a "test" of sorts that I hope to pass. So to stay busy and keep the focus off of the fact that I no longer have a classroom to return to, I plan to return to blogging on this site. I hope to use the time to reflect about what the changes bring for me in life as I pass through this first year "post retirement". I hope to actually turn my blogposts into a devotional of my own that I will perhaps write in the summer of 2023. Maybe by sharing what I have encountered in life, it can somehow or another be a help to someone out there along the way. For now, all remains well as I journey along the road to home. The reminder that I am living in the "third third" of my life does not go unnoticed by me. I plan to live life to the fullest, realizing of course that none of us are guaranteed the days ahead. What a blessing life truly is!
Here's where you can find me. Stay tuned.

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