Welcome to all of you baby boomers out there and the rest of you coming down the road, here's my new blog!  I've reached that pivotal point in life where I realize that the first half is gone and the second half is staring me hard in the face.  How do you know when you've reached the Second Phase?  Well for me it was when the youngest child left home for college (leaving me with an empty nest) and I realized that for the first time in my adult life, I was no longer directly responsible for another person.  That revelation was followed with six months of tears and then a "Yahoo!"  It certainly makes you take stock of things.

The first phase of adulthood is moved along by raising children, establishing careers, paying the bills, and trying to live the American dream.   And if life has turned out at all like you had anticipated; the kids have become independent adults(or are getting close), you still like your job (or still have it), the house is paid/nearly paid for, and you consider your life a success.  Now the wonderful thing about entering the second phase is that this time the circumstances are different.  You now get to focus on YOU!  I don't know about you, but I find the idea of that exhilarating!

These are some questions I've been asking myself:                                                                                        

• What haven't I done yet that I've always wanted to do?
• Do I want to stay in my current field?
• Where do I want to retire?
• How long does it take to fly to Italy?

I certainly don't have all of the answers yet but I'm excited about the possibilities.  Join me as I make my way through the second half of life - The Second Phase.  I'll share my experiences, my thoughts, and some humor.  I welcome you to contribute to this blog with your own stories.

The other day a man asked me what I thought was the best time of life.  "Why," I answered without a thought, "now."  ~David Grayson