Monday, February 14, 2011

A Mighty River


A Mighty River
I hear the impatient idling of the powerful diesel engine of the large articulated bus at the busstop half a block away. The light of a new day is barely seeping into my room. I roll over and look at the clock. Seven-thirty a.m, as usual. The large apartment block between my small townhouse and the busstop is emptying its occupants: young and middle-aged, singles and married into that bus and the others that have already come and gone.
They are the workers and the employers, the students and the professionals, the movers and the shakers, all joining in a fast-moving, turbulent, dynamic river of life that churns downtown with the energy of ideas and commerce, services and production, aspirations and dreams.




My wife and I used to be part of that mighty Amazon fed by all those commuters crowding quickly into the impatient buses, trains, ferries, planes, cars on this and every other morning.
But these days, in earned retirement, I can pull the covers up to my neck again, and roll over snug in the realization that I won't have to face a whole day of work on not enough sleep, again.
Retirement is a quieter tributary as life meanders through visits from grown sons and daughters, grandkids, photos, phone calls, the odd trip or cruise, e-mails, books, reflections and memories into that contented fulfilment into which my life partner has peacefully tiptoed before me.




10 comments:

Pak Zawi said...

Louis, we all earn our quiet life at the tail end of our life's journey. May we enjoy it the way we deem fit.

louis said...

Zawi,

Good to hear from you. Have you got a new address for your blog?

I don't see life's journey as having an end. It just moves along into anther phase. Retirement happens to be one of it's more pleasant phases.

~CovertOperations78~ said...

Dear Louis,
I agree with you that departure from this physical world does not signify an end to a journey. As Peter Pan says, "to die will be an awfully big adventure". I love how you accept and enjoy retirement with so much contentment and equanimity. I would probably rage, rage, against the dying of the light when it is my time to retire.

louis said...

CO'78,


Your quote from "Peter Pan" is a keeper.

I did do a lot of raging, believe me, earlier on perhaps because the light was brighter then and shone into al those dark corners of hypocrisy, injustice, unfairness, lack of logic, etc that really enrage the idealistic person such as yourself. But actually I do not see retirement as bringing with it any dimming of that earlier light, perhaps a mellowing of one's perspective?

Pat said...

I love this line:

'I can pull the covers up to my neck again, and roll over snug in the realization that I won't have to face a whole day of work on not enough sleep, again.'

Isn't that so true, though? I just love it :)

Now, if only I can think up a way to get Toffee and Jolie to think the same!!

louis said...

Pat,

Re Toffee and Jolie...there must be a Japanese robot that takes care of pets:)

Slow starts to mornings are fine with me.

Ric Hernandez said...

Glad you're back, Louis. God give you courage.

louis said...

Amen, Ric. Thanks for your welcome.

Any signs of Spring yet in your neck of the woods?

JALAN REBUNG said...

welcome back my friend, looking forward to your posting. Thnaks for being a frequent visitor to my humble blog.

RIZAL

louis said...

Hi Rizal.

It's good to hear from you.

It's a pleasure to visit your blog, to know what you have been doing and look at your photographs.

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