The first year of my retirement I was working much of the time, postponing my real experience of what retirement is like. For the past six months, I have had a taste of that. I don't really mind my own company; I can always enjoy reading a good book; it's fun to have lunch with family members or friends. However, I discovered that I have been in a "famine" of people interactions. There hasn't been enough, and I've missed that!
Since I have been working again for the past two weeks, I moved from serious famine to serious feast! Every day there are various groups of people gathered at the church for some task or function [collating the newsletter; bell choir working on a song, literary ladies, etc.] and I try to greet them. My routine includes morning office hours, a stop by the hospital on the way home for lunch. Often there is someone there to visit. Then I usually have a visit or perhaps more scheduled for the afternoon. Suddenly I have a feast of people in my life.
Here's the church and here's the people. And when you mix the two, you get food! There's that kind of feast as well, unfortunately! Thursday night dinners, Choir Party, coffee hours, Sunday soup and salad, and so forth. That makes for a significant challenge to eat as healthy as one is determined. Food has always been an occupational hazard for ministry. But I think I've discovered that I need the company of people more than I thought I would.
If only I could manage to have a food famine and a people feast!
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