Retirement – I may never see

I read a blog on retirement age in the Minute Mirror blog section. Since then, I have been thinking about retirement. I do not know why. Maybe it is because I keep reading about people living longer and working longer. Maybe it is because I am getting older myself, though I will not tell you my exact age. Let us just say I have seen enough birthdays to have an opinion on this topic.

Retirement is a fascinating time. I really believe that. It is the one part of life where the rules were written a long time ago and never really updated. When policymakers first decided on a retirement age, people did not live very long after that age. Now people live decades longer. The world changed, but the retirement rules mostly stayed the same. That gap is where all the interesting questions live.

But here is my confession. I run a newspaper. I sit in an editorial chair every single day, and I do not see myself ever leaving it. Journalism is not really a job you retire from. It gets into your blood. You wake up thinking about headlines. You go to bed thinking about tomorrow’s front page. I honestly cannot picture a version of myself sitting quietly at home either in Lahore or London with nothing to write and nobody to argue with about a story. So when people ask me if I plan to retire one day, I usually laugh and change the subject.

But let us play pretend for a moment. Let us say retirement does find me one day, whether I like it or not. If that day comes, I know exactly where I want to spend it. Not London. Lahore.

I know that sounds like a strange choice to some people. London has history, parks, and old charm. But I have seen how older people actually live there, and it is not a pretty picture. Many elderly people in London live alone. They spend long winters with little company. Their children are busy, their neighbours are strangers, and the city moves too fast to slow down for anyone. Old age in a place like that can feel like a quiet punishment.

Lahore is different. Lahore gives time and energy to its older people. Here, elders are not pushed to the side. They sit on charpoys in the evening with tea and conversation. Neighbours check on each other. Families stay close, even when they live in separate houses. There is noise, there is chaos, but there is also warmth. In Lahore, growing old does not mean disappearing from life. It means becoming the person everyone still comes to for advice.

That is why, if retirement ever catches me, I would rather grow old in Lahore than in London.

But wanting a good retirement is not enough. We also need to learn how to live it properly. Too many people treat retirement like an ending, a kind of slow fade into nothing. That is the wrong way to think about it. Retired life should be lived with dignity. It should have routine, purpose, and respect. Older people should keep learning, keep talking, keep contributing in whatever way they can, even if it is just guiding the younger generation with their experience.

And here is a message for my own tribe, the media people. Journalists love to believe they are irreplaceable. We convince ourselves that the newsroom cannot survive without us. That is simply not true. New voices need space to grow. Senior editors, reporters, and anchors should also learn to step back at the right time and let fresh energy take charge. Holding on too tightly does not honour a career. It blocks the next one.

So maybe one day I will follow my own advice. Maybe I will finally sit back, let someone else chase the deadline, and enjoy a cup of tea in Lahore instead of London. Until that day comes, though, do not expect me to leave my chair quietly.