Starting My Day with a Friendly Wave

There is an elderly man who lives on a corner I pass by every morning on my way to work. Most mornings, I see him sitting in his lawn chair with his loyal dog by his side. While his pooch pal soaks up the early morning sun, the gent waves at every car that passes. I don’t know this man, but he makes me smile every time I see him. Yes, I wave back. I look forward to waving at him.

Monday mornings are especially rough for me, as they are for most people. Both my husband and I have to be at work by 7:00 a.m., which means we are getting ready simultaneously. I usually hit snooze on my alarm a couple too many times and find myself rushing around like a mad woman. By the time I hit the road, I’m typically in a big hurry.

Stuck behind trash trucks, school buses, and overly cautious drivers who seem to conspire to make me late causes me a great deal of anxiety. I therefore take backroads with less traffic than the most direct routes to work. Fewer stoplights and vehicles make the longer drive a quicker option. So what if it’s narrow, curvy, and very hilly? Expedience is important.

My “shortcut” takes me right by the elderly gent’s house. I look forward to seeing him with his big smile and friendly wave. His presence makes the world seem a bit brighter and a whole lot happier. He reminds me of another time and place when I had a next-door neighbor who sat in his porch swing and waved at everyone who happened by.

I never appreciated my neighbor and his serene ways. Working in his garden, tending to his house and yard, and sipping iced tea in the shade while gently swinging are things I remember best, yet ignored in my youth.

I can’t exactly call the man on the corner my neighbor. We live a few miles from each other, but he is the most neighborly person I see in my current life. He is an inspiration to me. As I count my years to retirement, his is the life I aspire to one day have. I can see a future version of myself sitting in a lawn chair, sipping coffee, and waving at cars. I might even have a pooch pal by my side.

Many of my friends are retired. They have the freedom to pick their grandkids up from school and take them to the park. They can mosey through the stacks at the library and never glance at their watches.

My retired friends can concentrate on pursuing passions which simmered on the back burner for several years while they toiled at their jobs. Many of them have become prolific authors and artists. One of my friends is a retired nurse who is about to release her seventh book.

While my friends stay busy, they have flexible schedules. Lunch with gal pals on a Wednesday? No problem. Spontaneous road trip? Just need time to pack a bag. One of the groups needs a volunteer? Sure. Hubby found a good deal on a cruise? Let’s go.

Don’t get me wrong, I volunteer plenty. Too much if the truth be told. I also enjoy a robust social life. My trusty calendar is the only thing that keeps me from double booking myself. I do enjoy my full-time job. The paycheck from my job is what allows me to attend my writers’ groups, conferences, book signings, lunches with friends, and educational opportunities. I suffer no delusions about being able to afford my current lifestyle without a good job.

While I am a few years from making my own schedule and not worrying about timesheets, deadlines, pay rates, and which holidays are observed by my company, I look forward to it. I do believe in living in the moment, but I’m also doing my best to make good financial decisions to ensure I have the ability to sit outside and wave at people someday.

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