The Foreign Service Journal, April 2006

66 F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L / A P R I L 2 0 0 6 he Journal ’s January focus, “A World of Possibilities: Life and Work after the Foreign Service,” generated so much interest that stories, observations and insights on the subject from retirees have continued to pour in. The second installment of “Retirees Speak Up” appeared in the February issue. Here is the third and last installment. — Susan B. Maitra, Senior Editor utu REINVENTING OURSELVES After the “up or out” system was instituted in the 1980s, I used to think occasionally about what retirement from the Foreign Service might be like. It looked to me like a huge, yawning, empty abyss below the cliff that was the cutoff point of our careers. It was hard to imagine what might lie beyond. The Foreign Service had been almost my only job. Our careers, after all, enfolded our whole lives in a way few others would, with entire changes of country, language, per- sonal contacts, culture and job every few years. I would wager that for many of us, our lives have taken directions we never anticipated. Mine led me to jobs I never thought of and things I’d never tried. The best advice I ever heard was part of the State Department retirement seminar: lead a varied life and take care of your health. While I no longer recall all the details, the speaker urged us to include social ties, educational and cultural activities, spirituality, sports/health/exercise and some kind of meaningful work, paid or voluntary, in our plans. Those general guidelines, which research on longevi- ty supports, have formed a good basis for a life full of enrich- ing experiences for me. And had I not heeded the caution to pay attention to my health, I might not have noticed a lump in my neck that led to a timely cancer diagnosis and effective treatment. In running over the retirement cliff, I tumbled into a process of reinventing myself over and over as I tried differ- ent things. And I encountered the unexpected: a divorce, serious illness, accidental injury, death in the family, age dis- crimination in the workplace — the kinds of setbacks that could derail any plans. Each person has his or her own ver- sion of this; one of my FSO friends suddenly found himself raising grandchildren shortly after retirement. What Would It Take? My initial inclination upon completing the Job Search Program had been to seek a second, full-bore career, for I was far too young — only 51 — to sit on the sidelines of life. As one of my friends observed, “You’ve never let grass grow under your feet.” Reality and experience, however, revealed that a new, high-powered career was not only an unrealistic option but not really a desirable one for me. A Civil Service job would mean a suspended annuity. And I had never been attracted to for-profit business, whose focus is on the bottom line. Nonprofit organizations seemed L IFE A FTER THE FS: R ETIREES H AVE THE L AST W ORD M ORE STORIES AND ADVICE ABOUT RETIREMENT FROM THE F OREIGN S ERVICE . T