Here’s a novel idea. What if you knew for certain that you had little time left on this earth? What would you do with the days, assuming you’d be granted them?
Recently, after overcoming my negative attitude (or, more likely, months of procrastination) I finally visited one of the U.S. government’s old people websites — you know — Social Security and Medicare.
I’ll skip my: “Who Me? I’m Not Old” diatribe and present my point.
I discovered this “app” on Social Security Online http://www.ssa.gov/OACT/population/longevity.html and entered my gender and birth date. The resulting number brought me back to reality. On average, people of my age and gender have about 20.2 years remaining on this earth.
That’s 20.2 years, barring the world ending or a catastrophic event of some type or another does not intervene. 20.2 years?
Yes.
Why should I be surprised? In the days of youth, due to intervening national agenda items, like the draft and the Vietnam War, I actually did not believe I’d see my 26th birthday. A few of my high school friends didn’t. Most of the guys in my basic training company were sent to a few weeks of infantry training and then to Vietnam as replacements, right from Fort Polk, LA.
I followed up a few years later and learned most didn’t come home, either —including the drill instructors, too. They already had earned their Combat Infantry badges, but “The Man” wasn’t satisfied and wanted their lives, too.
That was a long time ago.
Back then I decided to concentrate on the things that were in my power to “control”.
The difference between now and then is: today I accept the fact of life that my time here is not unlimited and I may not have another day.
I intend to use every second doing what is most important.
1 comment:
It is therefore not surprising that the United States is also an exception regarding benefits for divorced spouses. Divorced spouses were originally entitled to a dependent's benefit (50 percent of former spouse's benefit) only after 20 years of marriage; this was reduced to 10 years in the 1977 Social Security Amendments. There is no limit on the number of divorced spouses who may be entitled through the Social Security entitlement of their former spouse. Moreover, benefits paid to a divorced spouse do not count against the maximum family benefit, which varies from 150 percent to 188 percent of the deceased's primary insurance amount. In most foreign countries, the practice in the event of divorce is either to terminate any rights to a social security benefit through the insurance record of the former spouse or to split the pension entitlements evenly between the partners in accordance with the years of marriage (splitting is mandatory in Canada, Germany, and Switzerland, and also in Japan if only one spouse was employed; otherwise, pension splitting is voluntary as part of the divorce settlement).
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