![]() There is Kamil Yusof, 72, who regularly delivers food and essential items to families living in low-cost PPR flats. She is currently sewing hats for sale with proceeds going to Cheshire Home to train those with disabilities to be independent. And if we have more than what we need, to give some to others who have much less.Ĭamie Choo, 65, winner of the Tender-Hearted category in the ‘Be a Star After 50’ campaign (organised by The Star in collaboration with Nutren Optimum by Nestle Health Science), is a fine example of a senior who made use of her excellent sewing skills to sew 1000 facial masks during the Covid-19 pandemic to raise funds for SPCA Selangor. It is never more rewarding than putting a lifetime’s accumulated wisdom and experience to good use at one’s golden age. Retired nurses can volunteer at community clinics or old folk’s homes. Retired teachers can offer to give free tuition. If we have a skill, why not make use of it to do something for the community? Temples, churches and mosques welcome volunteers to help out with their community service projects. We could offer to help at animal shelters, soup kitchens, recycling centres, community gardens and many more. There are so many ways we can give back to society, including donating blood, even donating our bodies for research in University of Malaya’s ‘Silent Mentor’ programme. Not all of us can afford to donate money, but we can certainly give our time, our energy, our experience, our talents/skill to help where it is needed. Some charities such as Hospice Malaysia, Alzheimer’s Disease Foundation Malaysia (ADFM), Malaysian Association for the Blind would welcome our help. Even RM10 can go a long way if many contribute. Ordinary folks like us can contribute too.įor those of us with some money to spare, we can donate to a deserving charity or to a noble cause. Many set up foundations to offer scholarships to deserving students and grants to promising start-ups. It makes them feel good to use their wealth for altruistic purposes. They know they can’t bring their wealth with them when they depart on what my mom euphemistically refers to as ‘a world cruise with no return date’. This is why many billionaires turn philanthropists when they approach their senior years. Even the rich may feel a void in their lives, an emptiness that needs to be filled with something they have yet to discover. Why not take it one level higher, one step further to also spark joy in others by sharing, caring and giving to others?Ĭan we be truly happy and at peace with ourselves while there are so many people out there needing help, and so many causes out there that could do with our support?īeing financially well-off does not guarantee happiness or peace of mind. But these are primarily solitary activities. ![]() ![]() Some have found pleasure in activities such as gardening, painting and writing at home. Perhaps we could borrow Marie Kondo’s tagline ‘spark joy’, not so much to declutter our homes – although that would certainly help when we downsize our home, and give away the bulk of our possessions accumulated over the years – but to finding something that would spark joy in our lives. When we have the rest of our lives ahead of us, what would make us look forward to welcoming each new day? How does one get to find meaning in life, that elusive ikigai, that raison d’etre?Finding joy Is this all there is to living life to the fullest in our retirement years? While some find they are busier (not necessarily happier) than ever in retirement, there are those among us who complain about the long endless days of boredom, with nothing exciting or fulfilling to occupy them.īeyond looking after their grandchildren, going shopping, playing golf, travelling, watching TV, meeting up with friends, indulging in their hobbies or learning something new, what else is there? Once we have gotten over the initial joy of being master of our time, harsh reality sets in. Retirement is turning out to be one big yawn. Day in, day out, it’s the same old routine. Bliss! But sooner or later, we will wake up one morning feeling something is missing in our lives. Ad infinitum.ĭoing what we like, living how we want, with no one to answer to.
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