Meaford Haven Creative Director Paul Grissom has an interesting article on 50plus.com, in which he describes the three seasons of retirement as characterized by passion, romance and repose.

“We call the seasons, ‘Passion’, when we are in our 50s and starting to think about what’s next; ‘Romance, whatever age we happen to be when we begin to slow down; and ‘Repose’, when we begin to require assistance to carry out our daily lives,” he writes.

He describes the first stage as a time in which we move from “the life we’ve always lived to a life we’d prefer to live,” and seek out the best possible place for that to happen.

By the “Romance” season, we’re still very active – but more fully involved with the community and seeking like-minded people. “The promise of finding a peer group in a supportive community with enough of the amenities we’ve always enjoyed will figure greatly in our decision,” writes Paul.

By the time we’re ready for “Repose”, we’re also ready to be rewarded for our past involvement and support of the community. “If we’re lucky we’ll all get really old some day and we’ll need a little help to get around,” writes Paul. “We, who have fully committed to our community, having done our part, now need our community to support us.”

This is just a summary of Paul’s enlightening article. Read the full version here, and feel free to share your thoughts in the comment section.