The Foreign Service Journal, July-August 2016

54 JULY-AUGUST 2016 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL early on that I wanted to keep working and contributing to society in retirement. Naturally almost everyone thinks about the basics like financial viability in retirement. But I believe it is also hugely important to consider what will bring you joy and fulfillment. The Foreign Service is a very particular kind of career, so it’s important to step back and ponder, “What do I want to do for the rest of my life?” Before I joined the Foreign Service in 1985, I’d only been to the Canadian side of Niagara Falls and to Japan. I spoke a bit of Span- ish. Now I’ve lived in eight countries, visited 63 (and counting), and have been able to communicate with fasci- nating people in Spanish, Mandarin Chinese, Russian and Turkmen in addition tomy native English. It’s probably good to have more experi- ence with the world outside the U.S. than I had before joining the FS, but for me andmy family it all worked out. Because I had won the 2007 Frank E. Loy Award for Environmental Diplomacy for my work as an envi- ronment, science, technology and health officer in Tel Aviv—including my contributions to Israeli-Palestin- plethora of thorny but compelling social issues, which is what, in fact, pushedme to come back to settle. It was during my time as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Colom- bia, more than 40 years ago now, that I learned I have a deep pas- sion for trying to help poor women get better control over their lives. The paths that opened for me here, which provide structure to my days and occupy a lot of volunteer time, are family plan- ning (via www.wingsguate.org) and reducing chronic malnutri- tion (www.aldeaguatemala.org) . Guatemala has both the highest fertility rate in Latin America (half its children are younger than 5) and the fourth-highest rate of chronic malnutrition in the world. Obviously, there is plenty of work to be done in these two intersecting areas, as in many oth- ers. Gratification and opportunities abound. To ensure that a choice similar to mine is going to work, it is necessary to be in a community with plenty of stimulating, Working and Reporting on Environmental Issues BY BOB TANSEY I retired on Sept. 30, 2009. Look- ing back, I feel like I was pretty well prepared. I think State’s four- day workshop is great. I also did the two-month transition and job search program just before I retired, and that provided lots of useful information and insights. My advice—whether to my younger self or to colleagues preparing to retire in the foreseeable future—is to look for what you love and prepare to do it for the rest of your life. I’ve been a Bud- dhist all my adult life, and that gives me an orientation to service and to ongo- ing self-development. So I figured out like-minded people with whom one feels comfortable. For me, that is mainly a generous supply of fellow expatriates, not the rural Mayans I try to serve in my volunteer work. It also requires access to family and friends in the United States, as well as ame- nities like books, music, travel opportunities, a good climate, a university and a public library. The decision to retire overseas takes time to ferment, and is enhanced by having previously lived in the potential destination. It is also true that only our excellent government benefits make such a choice possible for those of us having no other income streams. Serious volunteer work abroad or in the United States can be every bit as fulfilling as were our Foreign Service careers. Sue H. Patterson served in Iran, Italy, Guatemala and Washington, D.C. After her retirement, she undertook temporary duty assignments in South Korea, Kenya, Panama and Peru. Bob Tansey gives a presentation on conservation to a Chinese audience. COURTESYOFBOBTANSEY