Imagine that you will live to be 95 – that you know this with absolute certainty. What is the first thing you would do differently?By the way, does the thought of living that long make you anxious? Does your skin tighten up, your breath get restricted, your stomach a little sick? Do images start floating in, like of your Uncle Charles living out his days in a nursing home trying to be cheerful despite shingles, loss of vision and boredom?
Very old age seems pretty depressing and difficult for many of us, so we try not to think about it. As my mama said, ”old age is not for the faint of heart!”
So, let’s not think about it, let’s plan for it. Hopefully, we will be skiing the spring before we up and die, like my good friend Val did.
What would planning look like? First off, we have to start saving a lot more money for retirement. Most financial planners figure you will live 20 years after retirement. Well, if you are retiring at 65 and live for 20 years, look out kids, you are going to house the old folks for the next 10 years.
Pull out an old textbook, or Google “compounding”. Start saving today. Cut your expenses, live below your means. Buy or lease a less expensive car, maybe a used car. Rethink your daily coffee run. Put that money you don’t spend in a savings account. Have money deducted from your paycheck every pay period. Don’t touch that money.
Beyond the finances, what else do you need to do if you are going to live to 95? What about your health? Do you want to have diabetes, bad joints, difficulty walking from the weight you’ve been carrying around all these years? This scares me even more than the money. This makes me get out of my chair and exercise one more time each week. I don’t know how to prevent Alzheimers, but I do know I can push off diabetes by what I eat and if I exercise.
And will you have friends and family who care about you when you are old? What are you doing about connecting to your community? Are you giving back? Have you done something that creates a legacy of good? Something you can be proud of when you are sitting in your rocker telling stories to your great-grandchildren about the days before cell phones and the Internet. Let’s get on this, shall we?