Finally, my wife and I are moving towards the next phase of our half-time journey, looking to settle into our retirement mode. It will open up a new world of possibilities as we acquire new experiences.
Previously, I had stopped working full-time for almost 6+ years after leaving my last banking role in 2017. During that period, I became a student again and did various part-time consultancy projects. For the last 18 months, I have been working full-time in the ESG renewable energy space linked to the financial markets. I am now officially retired as of 01 Mar.
My wife is also retiring at the same time, and it coincides with our younger son graduating from his university studies soon. My dad had also retired in 1990, shortly after his youngest child (me) completed his university degree. I guess we feel comfortable that our job as parents to support our 2 sons financially is over, and we can cross the finish line into retirement mode.
As I told our sons, we will be the last sandwich generation that will have to take care of our parents and kids to provide financial support. We have provided for them till graduation, and they need not worry about having to worry about paying for our expenses into our twilight years. Although a token monthly allowance from them when they start their work career as a show of appreciation would be a nice gesture.
We have been planning our retirements for months and have packed our schedule with activities and trips for the next 8 months into October. Having moved into our existing home in December 2007, almost 17+ years ago, it is time to do a major renovation of our home soon. This will require us to move out for 2 to 3 months during the renovation and to work closely with the Interior Designer for the 3D mockups and choosing of materials. This will be our first major project undertaking.
3 major overseas vacations have also been planned, totalling about 50 days. The first one is to Portugal and Madrid in early Apr (15 days) as a graduation trip to celebrate our younger son’s completion of his 5 years of med school where he will embark on his career thereafter. The 2nd vacation will be in South Korea for 23 days in Seoul, Busan and some smaller towns to explore in June. Also, to see BTS band members getting out of the army LOL.
The 3rd trip will be in October with some close friends in China – Chengdu and Chongqing to see some beautiful natural scenery and feed pandas (13 days). Nothing is planned yet for the year-end family vacation, and there could be more short trips in between to Malaysia (JB) and Asean countries as we will have time on our hands.
It is our belief that now is a good time to travel, at least for the next 10+ years before we hit 70 years old, as the spirit is strong and willing while the body is able for overseas adventures. Our generation is more aware of health and exercise benefits and of the importance of ageing gracefully. The mortality rate in S’pore, a newly declared blue zone, is now 84 and will probably extend into the 90s when we reach our 80s in 2 decades time.
Being a student again and using my Skillsfuture credits is a goal for my lifelong learning journey. It is also another of my half-time goals. Technology like AI is evolving so fast by the week that it is hard to catch up. There is so much I do not know and much to learn to keep my mind active. I will have the time to dive deep into topics I am interested in.
2025 will be an interesting year of new experiences as we chart the next path of our lives and explore the world while we slow down to smell the roses. We are indeed blessed with the rewards of our 30+ years of our career and 2 wonderful boys. Time to recalibrate and review what we want to do next and follow our Ikigai.
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