Re the article "Retirees urged to do own thing" (Leader, April 8).
I appreciate Henry Collins is "selling" his book but his views need to be challenged.
As a 73-year-old retiree and a member of two clubs, let me refute his points.
- "Retirees should forget minding grandchildren".
Disagree: Enjoy them, love them while you are able and while they are young, but do not forget to hand them back.
- "They should also get rid of Mr Fix-it, and the gardens or fix the car unless they want these roles."
Disagree: If you are interested and happy to help, just do it! Do not forget to stay for dinner or at least have some of their beers.
- "People close to retirement should make a complete break."
Disagree: Ease yourself into it, if you can. Some friends of mine found the sudden cut-off difficult. They did all the odd jobs and then what?
- "Modern medicine meant retirees could live another 25 years."
Only part of the equation. Be physically active, make friends with an interest or a new hobby that makes you happy. Then you will reduce reliance on old and modern medicine alike as they are not the answer to longer life; be pro-active.
Yes, stimulate the brain but sitting down for long periods writing books is very questionable.
Make a difference and feel good, join a club and for example help the underprivileged, particularly children, to stimulate your brain and be happy.
Ray De Marco, Penshurst