Where do you see yourself in 10 years?

I know some people live their lives with 1 year, 5 year, 10 year plans etc. ad nauseam.

Not me.

It has everything to do with the circumstances of my birth. I’ve held pretty loosely to this thing called life, and never have I ever had long-term life goals.

Oh.. wait. It’s not a 1,5 or 10 year goal. But sometime in my 30s I wrote down that I still wanted to be running at age 87…provided I make it that long.

Of course, in order to still be able to run – at all – by age 87, that would mean I’d need to take good enough care of myself to reach that goal. Honestly, I could do better. And as I’ve now reached my 50s, I sometimes wonder what I was actually thinking when I wrote that down. I’ve got another 30 plus years to reach that!

But to the specific question…the simple answer is: I don’t. I don’t have a vision for what my life might look like one week from now. Ten years from now seems unfathomable!

Some things I might hope for:

Ten years from now, I want to be in a growing, fulfilling relationship with my wife. We’ve made it over 30 years so far. In another 10, I’d like to say “those were the best 10 yet!”

I’d hope to have some grandkids, but I’m not putting that pressure on my kids. They’re both (really, all four, including spouses) pretty amazing adults, and I know they’ll pursue kids if and when they’re ready. I do hope to use the “grandpa” name that has already been assigned to me, though – because it’s quite humorous! Grumpy! Yes. Grumpy! That’s a whole story in itself – for another blog perhaps.

I am considering going back to school and getting my Masters degree in Psychology. Phoenix University offers a competency-based degree with a ticket price of $11K. Of course there are stipulations, but it seems actually attainable! And I want to use this season of transition toward being ready for what might be ahead. I don’t exactly know what I would do with that degree. I’m truly interested in the knowledge I would gain from doing the work. And having studies to challenge me seems like a worthy endeavor. I also hope to be able to help others through what I’m learning now, and would learn through attaining a degree.

I’m sure there will be so many changes in the next 10 years! I don’t want to hold onto some vision that will likely be entirely different than reality! I want to be ready and embrace whatever life brings!