I am retiring this year. A committee of my colleagues has gotten together to vet resumes to fill the position and today, the first of five finalists came in to teach a practice lesson and interview with different constituencies. I have purposely kept myself outside of the process. There is something that feels mildly awkward about being involved.
I heard that his lesson went wonderfully and everyone liked him. A lot. Including the students.
There is something so bittersweet about retiring. After all, I love my work. I love interacting with the students and my colleagues. It’s just that I want to have some quality time for myself and with my spouse before the inevitable end. There never was any doubt that my colleagues would find an awesome person to replace me. But I guess the reality of it really hit home today. I will really be retiring. I will be leaving the employ of work that I have been doing for over 35 years.
A student of mine came up to me after school today. “Are you really retiring? I heard you were retiring! What?”
“Yes, it’s true.”
“But, but — you have so much energy! How can you retire?”
“Hmm…,” I answered. “That’s precisely the point.”
Nexus 
The trick to retirement, I was told years ago, is to have something else after you leave your job to fill your time: traveling, gardening, writing, reading, spending more time doing things with your loved ones, whatever holds your interest. But our work takes up so much of our lives that if there is nothing to fill that space, then people tend to sink into a kind of listless state of being. So you are right to think you have energy to devote to other enjoyments in life. Good luck in spending it over the many years left to you.
There is life after teaching!
I AM WAITING
NAMASTE