My daughter recently turned 40. When I was forty I felt young. Life was busy, mainly because of my children’s activities, since they were 12 and 15. I made a point of attending every sporting event they were involved in, if possible. My daughter at 40 is living a different life with three children ages 3 through 8. In addition, she is living it through homeschooling, Covid-19 lockdowns, and masks. However, I am in my 60’s and life is so different. I am including a list of 7 great things about being 60+.
By the time I turned 50 my children were out of our house. We became empty-nesters, something I have learned to love. At that time I was convinced that living into my 70’s would be sufficient for me. I would have enjoyed a long and happy life.
I turn 65 in March. 65 is a big deal because that is when you usually start receiving Medicare. There are exceptions to that rule, but for the most part, you will start receiving Medicare information from every insurance company that you’ve ever heard of about the time you reach six months before your 65th birthday. But 65 in its self sounds old to me My body and heart still feel young. Actually, if I never look in the mirror, I am in my late 40’s early 50’s. Don’t tell me any different.
1. Downsizing
To many people being in your 60’s could mean you are an empty nester. That large home you are living in may seem overwhelming. Then again, it could be the best place for your out-of-town children and their families to visit. Maybe instead of buying a smaller home, you end up renting a smaller home. The choice to downsize is personal. Give it a lot of thought before you take the plunge.
For us, the decision to downsize was best for us. We went down over 600 sq. ft. but we added a bedroom. The smaller home has smaller rooms and one less bathroom. One of the best things we have done was downsize our home. This eliminated our house payment, reduced our homeowner’s insurance and property taxes. And it also forced us to get rid of a lot of things we didn’t really need. Downsizing isn’t for everyone, but it was a great choice for us.
2. Finances
In your sixties, you may start your social security and medicare. You may have a pension that you will be receiving. Or maybe you will start drawing from your 401K, IRA, etc. Your finances may be very different from before, when you were raising children, working full-time, and living in a bigger home. Your monthly budget should change. It could go up or down. This can be a time of a lot of decisions. Think them through to decide what is best for you. And factor in unexpected expenses. If you need more help deciding if you have enough money saved, check with a financial planner.
Our finances have changed. Selling our more expensive house has reduced our expenses. Our income has gone down, due to being on social security. Our health insurance costs have gone down due to medicare. We have started drawing on one of our IRAs. We feel very confident we have enough money to last us through our lifetime and maybe even leave a bit for our children when we die. We are focusing on the positive, feeling we have plenty of money for a long lifetime.
3. Retirement
Once you hit your 60’s you may have already retired from your job. If not, the 60’s may be your time to make that decision. Sadly, I didn’t retire necessarily by choice. I had told my daughter that I planned to work another year or so in 2019. Two days later I lost my job After much thought, my bosses restructured the business and that included eliminating my position. I was permanently laid off. That was a new experience for me.
So I started looking for a job, not something I had planned to do in my 60’s. Currently, many people have lost their jobs or business, because of Covid-19. After my layoff, things were going smoothly. until I found out I had my non-cancerous brain tumor. Then began the removal of the tumor, physical therapy, another surgery to implant a bone-attached hearing aide, and once I recovered from all of that it had been a year and I decided at age 64, in the middle of Covid it was time to retire. There was no saying goodbye to fellow employees, no going out to lunch with anyone from work. Nothing. I had retired, without any celebration. If that has happened to you, know that you are not alone.
4. Time
You will have the same 24 hours in a day that you used to, but now you may have more say in how you use them. If you don’t go to work anymore you also aren’t traveling to work and from work anymore. Thus, you have more time. There is another thing you have more of, it’s more flexibility. If plans change at a moment’s notice, you can always put off your original plans until tomorrow. You basically have the flexibility, for the most part, to switch things up and sometimes actually delete your plans.
Some of our extra time is spent visiting or hosting our children and their families. We have watched some of our grandchildren overnight while their parents were spending some alone time. We spend vacation time with our children and grandchildren.
5. Travel
Travel is often a big part of retirement and older age. The children are usually gone and now it may be your time to discover unvistied places or visit friends and relatives who have moved away. It can be time to make a list of the places you always dreamed of visiting but never had the time. And maybe you can purchase that travel trailer or motorhome you always dreamed of owning. Some people sell their home and downsize to a motorhome and live out of the motorhome for six months, or permanently.
Last year we began our first real traveling since hitting our 60’s. We visited three states to take them off of the list of states that I wanted to visit in order to visit every state in the United States in my lifetime. This year we are going to three other states, possibly North Dakota Wyoming, and Nebraska. And we are visiting our grandchildren/children more often, or at least we try. This year we purchased a used travel trailer. We should start using it soon. I anticipate traveling will be a large part of our lives now.
6. Sleep
Every time I heard about the sleep patterns of the “elderly” I heard that they went to bed early and got up early. This may be your new way of life or the continuation of habits you’ve had for years. Naps in the afternoon might be something you start. Relaxing throughout the day can be a nice treat.
I’m a night owl. So going to bed early and getting up early was not something that sounded appealing to me. Since I don’t have a job, I can sleep in as long as I want. Or I can go to bed early and try to get up early, but I usually fail at that. I have gone to bed after midnight on occasion. And I’ve tried going to sleep at 9:30. I’ve decided that as long as I am not late for appointments, I can do whatever I want. My husband usually gets up earlier than me. I usually use an alarm each night unless I am so exhausted I don’t care when I get up in the morning.
7. Grandchildren
Before you have grandchildren, you don’t realize how wonderful they are. We love our 5 grandchildren. The babies make us love them all even more. Grandchildren may not be a part of your future. And that is fine, too. Maybe you are really close to a nephew or niece and their children are extra special to you. And then again, maybe you are happy maintaining your childless lifestyle. This will really allow you to do whatever you want to, whenever you want to, and that might make you the happiest of all.
Everyone is different. Once our children were married, we delighted in the grandchildren that came along soon after. And at first, I was happy to love them and spoil them. Now I’ve started looking forward to them growing up and possibly marrying and having children. The sixties are getting to be more enjoyable each day.
The Future
What lies ahead for you? If you are reasonably healthy you may be planning many exciting events in your life for years to come. If your health is starting to slip you may be planning how to really enjoy your last days as much as possible. Wherever you stand, if you have not already done so, you should be writing your will and the other forms that will make your death easier on your heirs, regardless of who they are.
My idea of dying in my seventies is coming very quickly. I’ve now been planning to watch my grandkids at more sporting events. And eventually, they could get married. And if I made it that long, there could be great-grandchildren. My mom recently died at 83 with 20 great-grandchildren and one on the way. I realize dying at a certain age is not up to me. I could die tomorrow and never seen my grandchildren as teenagers. I am not concerned with the age at which I die. But, instead of fearing dying in my 80’s or 90’s and having the possibility of being taken care of in a care-home or developing dementia, I’m more focused on staying healthy.
God has my whole life figured out already. While I remain on earth I plan to continue to enjoy my 60’s and gracefully move into my 70’s. And possibly my 80’s.
How do you feel about your 60’s, whether you are currently in them, looking forward to them or, you have moved past them? Getting older is something that may make you happier than you have ever been. Please comment below on how you are doing with your current age, no matter what age it may be.