Success is Escaping “Active” Retirement Community Living

It’s not for me!   I gave an “active” retirement community in a great waterfront Florida city a six-month experimental try and my bottom line assessment agrees with Sophia, the lovable curmudgeon in the iconic “Golden Girls.”

It’s a prison, plain and simple. Almost no one resides there who is truly independent so “active” is a relative term. Many, perhaps most, are struggling with health issues and needing care.

Many are placed there by their families as a convenience.  Others have placed themselves there to avoid being a “burden” to their loved ones.

A mostly delightful bunch of souls whose better days are sadly behind them.

There are a few super agers like the 95-year-old Gerber Baby who wrote mystery stories after retiring as a school teacher. All with almost-always wonderful stories to tell.  As long as they can remember them.

As for me, my time may come — if I’m lucky enough to live long enough and my resources do not deplete — but it’s not today.  As the lyrics of the popular 50s song “Forget Domani”  reprises:  “Let’s forget about tomorrow.  For tomorrow never comes!”

Meanwhile, I remain grateful and strive to make a positive difference.  So, when I whine, please  remind me to quit complaining!

Ageless Wonder

8 Comments

  1. Knew this senior living place was not for you. Too boring. I like a more diverse group living together. We have experience to share, while younger generations open us up to more challenges. Balance in healthy living!

    • 100% agree. The experiment took me to a great walkable and vibrant downtown which I enjoyed tremendously… but what was within the walls proved less than appealing. Onward!

  2. Vicki….lets form our OWN “retirement home.”
    Ellen Kimmel did it in CA….we can learn the
    ins and outs from her…. Susan

    • Let’s do it, Susan. Ellen will have a treasure trove of information. We can pick our tribe and set our own criteria. I looked at this a few years ago when a friend became an organizer of the Living in Community group in Sarasota. Info here on community models and intentional communities. https://www.livingincommunity.net/index.html
      Count me in to explore the possibilities!

  3. Vicki, great article. A t the end of my nursing career I worked in a Life Care Facility! It is not for me either but a lot of people don’t have a choice or they don’t want to be dependent on family.

    • Ann, oh my goodness! What an experience that must have been. We never know our future circumstances that will drive us to make a decision when the time comes to make a change. For the moment, I know what I don’t want. Perhaps it was the right decision but at the wrong place. Only time will tell. Hope you are taking good care of yourself after a lifetime of caring for others and I look forward to our paths crossing agin in person in the future. Meanwhile, sending a big hug!

Comments are closed.