Senior spring to social security. On the hill to over the hill. Graduation to ... grandchildren? Here's what seniors have to say before all is said and done.
David Meyer already feels old.
“I guess I’m living in retirement right now, honestly, as a part-time student. Happy retirement,” he said.
In many regards, Meyer enjoys the unencumbered schedule of a person thrice his age: He wakes up late, takes one class, watches films and practices writing.
Unlike the typical pensioner, Meyer has a part-time job. This semester, he is working as an after-school assistant at a local elementary school.
“These kindergartners through fifth graders are so spry,” he said.
The students insist that he play basketball with them, that he play ever more basketball with them, that he continue playing with them even after they take dramatic tumbles that would force someone of Meyer’s advanced age out of athletic action for months.
Meyer is keenly aware that he lacks that kind of time, at least at Tufts.
“I love my solitude, but I’m definitely making a more concerted effort to make these moments count with my friends,” he said.
Along those lines, he recently decided to watch the National Basketball Association’s All-Star Game from the comfort of his friend’s couch as opposed to crashing on his own sofa at home.
Meanwhile, Meyer’s lease on his off-campus house ends in a matter of months, but he cannot search for his next place of residence quite yet.
“There is something disconcerting about all of my friends looking for their apartments while I’m looking for a singular job," Meyer said.
“I’m going into the film and TV and entertainment market and that means that applications come out around right now. I’m starting that process, as opposed to my friends who were done with it in October, so that’s a little stressful,” Meyer explained.
In the long term, Meyer hopes to make a name for himself in Los Angeles before returning to his native Chicago.
“I don’t wanna be famous, but I would like to be recognized," he said. “If I got famous, it would probably be as a writer.”
Meyer emphasizes the social value of the shows and/or movies for which he would like to become known.
“It’s not in the box-office returns or any of that ... [I want to] go to bed and feel good about not just what I made creatively, but what I made societally,” he said.
Meyer’s work has not yet won any Oscars, but his time at Tufts did produce at least one made-for-TV moment. He recounts one Valentine’s Day in which he found himself in a crowded theater on a quasi date with his unreciprocated crush, watching a romantic movie and wincing at the smooching sounds from happy couples around him.
“Looking back, that’s one of my most cinematic memories,” he said.
Maybe Meyer will enshrine that scene in a film, or maybe not. Regardless, he would love to hear his future self say, “It’ll all work out. Retirement is great. Your life is great.”
Of course, not even an aspiring screenwriter can film the future, but he can hope for his Hollywood ending.
From Seniors to Citizens: Happy retirement
