Welcome to My Retirement Season

I started My Retirement Season because retirement has been more layered than I expected.

It is a gift. I know that. I do not take lightly the privilege of having time, flexibility, health enough to enjoy much of it, and the chance to ask new questions after decades of work.

But retirement has also been more disorienting than I expected.

After more than 38 years in federal service and leadership, I knew how to work. I knew how to carry responsibility. I knew how to solve problems, make decisions, lead teams, navigate conflict, and keep moving.

Then I retired at 56 and realized something surprising: having more freedom does not automatically tell you what to do with your energy, experience, and desire to still be useful.

That has been the real question underneath much of this season for me.

Not simply, “What should I do now?”

But deeper questions like:

What do I do with this energy?
How do I stay useful without rebuilding the same pace I just left?
What does meaningful contribution look like now?
How do I care for my body after years of pushing through?
How do I show up for faith, family, relationships, health, and good work in this season?

I do not want retirement to become another performance project. I also do not want to drift through it without intention.

So this space is where I’m paying attention.

On YouTube, I share conversations about life after work, identity, faith, family, health, and what it means to live well in this season. Here, in these reflections, I’ll share some of the thoughts behind the videos: the quieter pieces, the real-life experiments, the questions I’m still carrying, and the lessons I’m learning as I go.

This will not be a place for perfect retirement formulas.

It will not be financial advice.

It will not be endless vacation content.

It will be honest.

A place for the middle space between being grateful and still adjusting. Between wanting freedom and still wanting meaning. Between slowing down and still wanting to contribute. Between knowing life is changing and trusting that God is not finished with us yet.

I’m building this slowly and simply. For now, that feels right.

So welcome to My Retirement Season.

I’m Kim. I’m retired, not done, and figuring out life after work out loud.

What are you learning to pay attention to in this season?