As a child growing up in Ireland, Roy Ferguson’s dream was to go to sea on merchant ships. When he qualified for his steam engineer’s ticket, he was off to sail the seven seas. Then lovely Maureen came into his life. He had to rethink his career path. The young couple emigrated to Alberta, first to Stettler where Roy worked in a natural gas and sulphur extraction plant, then to Lethbridge where Roy finished his career as the engineer for a distillery.
Now in his 70s, Roy is back to work, in southern Alberta far from the sea. He has a part-time job as food safety adviser for a large supermarket. When those duties are complete, he helps stack shelves, and he often helps seniors (he does not see himself in this category) carry groceries to their vehicles. Roy and Maureen’s four children have left home and moved to other cities. Roy says the greatest pleasure he finds in his retirement job is regular contact with young people.
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Roy and I chat on the phone a few times a year. Last week I commented that I have confidence in the current generation of young people. “I will be glad to hand over responsibility to them. They are bright, focused and energetic. I suspect they will do a better job than our generation.” Roy agreed. He says the young people he works with at the store treat people of all ages as equals. They are open to sharing ideas and they engage in meaningful conversation. In their wired world there is room for people of all ages. The old teen adage “Never trust anyone over 30” is passé.
Cecil Sorensen is chief flying instructor for a flight school where I give lessons as a part-time instructor. He echoes Roy: “Most people my age are retired. One of the reasons I continue working is daily contact with young people.”
There have been times in my life when I felt I was the only person who could do my job. Strangely enough, when it came time to move along, my place was filled by a younger person. My successors brought a new perspective to the work. Most of them solved problems which were beyond my comprehension!
Many of the volunteer guides I work with at the Western Development Museum are retired teachers. They enjoy the continuing association with children. They comment on how curious and interested young people are these days. There are also retired farmers in the volunteer group. They work behind the scenes in the shop, restoring ancient farm equipment and swapping stories. Some of them tell me they rent their land out to a former neighbour who brings them back for a few weeks work a year. Others have passed their farm to their children. They are guarded with their praise, but I sense their appreciation for the skills and abilities of their successors.
One man told me “I didn’t think my son and his wife were up to the hard work, long hours and tough decision-making. I guess I didn’t have enough confidence in them. They grew up faster than my mind would allow.” I mentioned the success of third-and fourth-generation farms as examples of wisdom and opportunity being handed down over and over. He lamented “It took me a long time to accept that someone else could look after the farm as well as I could. I am glad I am here to see their success.”
SuggestedScripture:Psalm71:17-22,Proverbs22:1-9
