4 ms·
Most important things in life are family, friends, and health. If you have those 3 things consider yourself blessed. I always try and put those 3 things above w
by seibelj 7y ago
Most important things in life are family, friends, and health. If you have those 3 things consider yourself blessed. I always try and put those 3 things above work, even though I work a lot, because having those 3 things is so vitally important.
- CNJ7654 7y agoWise words, although I would also count work as a blessing in itself. Having a real sense of purpose and usefulness in the world is important. Being forced out of the workforce by advanced aging must be rough
- bufferoverflow 7y ago1) Not necessarily work, but something that drives you. A good hobby can be much more fulfilling than the work for money 2) Helping others is another thing that is incredibly rewarding, mentally at least.
- davidjnelson 7y agoIf you can mix the two that’s great too. Creating a product and seeing people use it is an amazing feeling. Even if it’s not “perfect” and you’d love to have time to add another 10 features ;-)
- harimau777 7y agoTalking just from the perspective of having work that contributes to society (as opposed to the economic aspects of work) I think volunteering is a good idea. There was a man at the church I grew up in who was seriously disabled in an industrial accident who volunteered 40 hours a week at the local library. Similarly my grandmother volunteered at a hospital into her 90s. In her case it actually saved her life when she had an aortic aneurysm that almost certainly would have killed her if she hadn't already been at the hospital when it happened!
- tonyedgecombe 7y agoIf you only find purpose and usefulness through work then you are going to find it painful when it inevitably comes to an end.
- davidjnelson 7y agoI wonder if this is why meditation meetups skew to an aging demographic.
- davidjnelson 7y agoSo true. Feels good to have hard won skills be utilized.
- civicsquid 7y agoI might suggest adding (a sense of) purpose in there as well. From what I've seen, it becomes hard for senior citizens because they feel like they've lost their usefulness. Even with the three other things you mentioned, not feeling like a contributor to society must be really hard.
- that_jojo 7y agoHonestly, this is one of the many things that makes me feel incredibly lucky that I have the interest in computing that I do. Not only has it led me down a supremely well-timed and lucky career path, but I also have a no-impact hobby that I can look forward to continuing into my old age. Might have to get a niece or nephew to crawl behind a desk to plug in the odd dongle, I suppose. Whippersnappers.
- rootusrootus 7y agoAs a sad anecdote, my father was a systems engineer for most of his career, deeply into all things technical. He's 86 now, however, and while he has plenty of family around, his friends have all passed and he no longer has the brainpower to do technical things that he used to enjoy. But his mind is sharp enough to know what he's missing. He talks somewhat regularly about how useless he feels. I've got no good answers.
- Deadsunrise 7y agoGet him into VR. My parents are a bit younger (~70) but they are amazed at the valve index and the experiences that it provides. They use it more than me.
- DanBC 7y agoIf you're able to could you interview him on video about the work he used to do? I would find those videos fascinating. You might be able to set up an AMA-style thing where people ask questions about what he did, how he did it, why things were done in that way. Do you have anything similar to U3A where he is? It's a nice way to meet other people and keep your brain ticking. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_the_Third_Age https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_the_Third_Age
- blueprint 7y agoHow can you maintain those three without work?