How To Keep The Spark In Your Marriage After Retirement

By Author: Tina Turbin
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Retirement, an exciting milestone for most, can come upon people quickly. Whether you're looking forward to it or not, you still need to plan for it. What are your plans after you no longer have to report into your "day job"? Some want to travel to places only dreamed of during their working years, some just want to stay home and relax while others feel that anything will be better than the rut they have been in.

When you retire, not only will your schedule be different you may also find that you and your spouse now have a lot more time to pick and choose what you do with your days and evenings. At the same time you may find that you miss the "space" you had from one another while you were working as you are now both at home, often at the same time. This lifestyle is both new and unusual and may take some adjustment. Not only is there now a lot of free time (the kids are gone and you're not working 9:00 to 5:00), you're together. What's fresh and new to talk about? Where is the excitement?

Divorce statistics continue to rise steadily for people over 50. Many believe that the most common triggers for this are children ...
... leaving home or retirement. Couples start to feel they have nothing in common any more and marriages that have lasted for 30 years or more are coming to an end. The good news is, you don't become another statistic. All you need is a plan.

For a successful life in retirement, it is always good to have a plan of action set both individually as well as together. After all, you have spent a number of years working hard, raising kids and this is YOUR time to enjoy and look back at all you did and move forward in time, with a bigger and even more exciting plan.

The plan of action works best when each person in the relationship has his and her own goals set as well as some mutual goals that are of interest to both of you. This can be any number of things and the best part of this is that the world is open to your imagination of wonderful ideas. Sit down together and help one another look at what each of you individually may not have yet done that you want to do individually as well as together. This is a terrific way to plan another chapter of your life with your spouse and to keep the sparks really flying.

The last half of our lives together is one which will be only as exciting as we make it and continue to be a team. The excitement will also come from respect and admiration to one another, care and consideration and helping one another to acquire that new skill, helping your spouse attend a class that he or she gave up years ago, or whatever it may be.

An important part of this (or any) plan is communication. While working on these new goals together, issues may come up which have always been there but never voiced. There is more time together now and you both may find yourself wanting to open up about these points. By all means, have a relationship with some spark to it. You will find that both of you will benefit from open and honest communication, however, you need to be a sincere friend and maintain "all ears" to make this work. Some topics may not be to your liking but they may be important to your spouse. Be a true friend, listen and let one another grow in this new era of your lives. The last half of our lives can be tremendously exciting as well as a learning experience.

While some adults may want the looks they had back in their 20's, most of them would never trade what they know now for those young and wild years. Those experiences are what makes "maturity", have many benefits and are a key point in being a wonderful spouse.

So go ahead and enjoy your retirement, with a "spark" of excitement in your relationship and have a new adventure going through the rest of your lives, hand-in-hand, kicking up your heels.
About Author:
Tina Turbin is a children's published author, writer, researcher, humanitarian and mom. Working for many years with children in the Entertainmanet Business and raising three talented and successful children with her husband, Tina has always been an advocate for families, women's issues, health and nutrition as a way to improve the quality of lives and health for others. Visit How to Keep the "Spark" in Your Marriage After Retirement.