Here & Now

Currently, I am still waiting for my monthly annuity to take effect.  I took a Gerontology class in University, and the one thing I remember from it was something that was very scary.  The professor said, "Many women are one husband away from poverty".  That really stuck with me.

I suspect that this will change, or at least improve, over time, but right now there are a lot of women depending on their husbands for their retirement income.  I'm in that group.  I have some retirement income of my own, but it is not even close to MH's retirement income.  Luckily, he took care of me. He took a smaller monthly payout in order to provide me with a higher survivor's annuity.  I filed the claim over 2 months ago and am still waiting for it to be processed.  The last deposit MH received was the day he died.  It didn't take any time at all before the deposit was called back and returned to his employer.   I am fortunate in that I am able to get along for however long it takes for my annuity to start.  I am so aware that many women would be financially devastated while waiting for their survivor benefits to start.  I think women need to be aware of this and prepare for that possibility.

I'm trying to figure out what my life will be like moving forward.  What do I want it to be like?  I feel like I can't move forward until this annuity thing is resolved.  Many women who find themselves widowed are trying to figure out who they are, independent of a husband.  I'm at the point that I'm asking myself if I need to figure out who I am.  I know that sounds kind of ridiculous, but seriously, do I know who I am, or do I need to find out? Just asking the question might actually answer it.

#survivor's annuity

#who am I 

#prepare for widowhood