There is choice where once there were schedules and duties. There is a chance to redefine self, once defined by a job. There is also the acceptance that time is finite for Klaus and his wife, a heart attack survivor and cancer survivor respectively. Not wanting a retirement party at the university, Klaus is honored instead with a white oak tree planted in a neighborhood park and visible from his kitchen window. A friend throws him a nostalgic dinner in the style of her late husband.
Interesting gifts arrive, along with acquaintances congratulations.
All this is fodder for Klaus s journal. These questions remain even after he admits to himself that he is burnt out from years of reading and commenting on student papers. And when he finds he will be able to retain an office at the university, he wonders how he ll manage to live with one foot in, one foot out of academic life. Klaus is using his daily journal writing to get him to the point where he accepts retirement. And so it s a relief when, six months into the writing, the journal finally takes him and his readers on his journey to discovery.