Retirement Plan?

I was having a conversation with a friend and she was telling me how she has to work twice as hard if she ever was to have a retirement plan. She mentioned how she wants to work harder so she can retire earlier and then spend the rest of her retirement life with her children/grandchildren, travelling around the world and then starting an exciting hobby like gardening. I didnt understand it. I asked her why she felt she needed to wait till she retired to do all those things she mentioned. She had no answer and it immediately dawned on me. We are often conditioned to think the way we do...sometimes without even knowing why we do what we do. Its a system sort of...people before us have done it and now it has become the norm so we must follow suit.

I really dont understand why people feel they need to work so hard and then enjoy the fruit of their labour in their 60's when arthritis, high BP or hip replacements may take centre stage. What is the point of being on earth if one isn't living? I believe people should work hard but also find the time to spend with loved ones, travel around the world and also start a new hobby or even a new business they may be passionate about. Why would i want to wait till my bones are brittle to go skydiving, cycle around africa/europe or swim in a warm spring in swaziland? There are other adventures id love to do when i am old but the ones that involve lots of energy and adrenaline id rather do in my youth. If people invested time in living then life wouldn't be so difficult. Imagine if you travelled to at least one country every year until you are 70, you would have experienced so many cultures and traditions and seen so many cities, tasted so many delicacies and learnt so much. why wait till retirement?

A lot of us work work and do more work but we must not forget that if we fail to do the things that make us happy and spend time with people we love and go to places we love, we may regret it when we are old and grey. Dont just waltz through life....enjoy every moment...every minute...and every second of it

xoxo
GS