Chalk this up to random musings.

In everyone’s life there a bunch of big moments. By definition, they’re quite short, but their effects are quite profound. Some of them can’t be exactly planned, either by nature or design. I’m talking about things like winning the lottery or giving birth. But others can very well be planned in advance. Things like starting a new job, going off to college, retiring or going back to work after maternity or paternity leave.

And it’s strange to me that we’re treating them as moments rather than processes. For example, with retiring, why isn’t it acceptable to first start working 6 hours a day, then 4 hours a day, then 2 hours and finally stop altogether. Or work fewer and fewer days a week, across one or several years. It would definitely make the experience more enjoyable than going to work normally on Friday, then not going on Monday, and stopping a pattern which had lasted for decades. Similarly with starting school for the first time, or moving from one form to another. It seems quite harsh the way it suddenly starts one autumn, and is so intense from the get go.

Anyway, food for thought.