重返工作的时代

王海杰

如今，对于许多退休人员来说，退休并非愉快之事，因为离开工作岗位后他们顿失精神寄托。虽说他们在家中可以干些自己喜欢的事情，但总有一种挥之不去的寂寞和空虚，于是许多退休人员不甘虚度晚年，纷纷重新走向社会，开始新的工作。

Workers are returning to their careers， or starting new ones， after age 65.

More than ever， work is where many of us develop our sense of purpose. That doesn't end at age 65. After being retired for only three months， Sue Ellen King returned to work at the University of Florida Health in Jacksonville， Florida， where she had been a care nurse and nursing educator for 38 years. She is now working part-time in a position created just for her. “It's perfect，” she told The New York Times. “I get the satisfaction of having people appreciate what I do.” With the average life span of those who reach age 64 now stretching all the way to 84 years old， those who reach retirement age still have many potential years of work to go.

Job sites connected to part-timers， temporary positions， and some can also turn up opportunities that may lead to longer-term work. Fred Dodd tried a part-time job after his unemployment as a risk analyst for large banks at age 63. He'd thought about retiring then. “But part of me just wanted to keep working—partly for the money， but more just because I felt I wanted to do more in my career，” he said.

The unretired have the advantage of not needing to focus on the earnings potential of whatever jobs they take on， so these older workers are attracted to more meaningful work. And since they are voluntarily putting their skills and experience to good use， they may well have more flexibility than their mid-career colleagues. Two-thirds of retirees who'd come back to the work world were doing meaningful work they enjoyed. Legal work and community service were popular choices， and as was teaching—all areas in which older workers might have an opportunity to make their own schedules.

Earning more money rarely seems like a bad idea， but it can cause issues for retirees， including effects when they claim social security（申請社会保障金） benefits early.

Rrading check

1. How does Sue Ellen King like her work？

A. Interesting.    B. Satisfying.

C. Boring.    D. Encouraging.

2. What does the second paragraph mainly tell us？

A. Why many retirees return to the work.

B. Why Sue Ellen King found a nursing job.

C. What the real purpose of our work is.

D. What the average life span is.

3. Why do the unretired like meaningful jobs？

A. These jobs have more flexibility.

B. These jobs have lots of potential.

C. The unretired don't care much about salary.

D. The unretired can't do very hard jobs.

4. What work do the unretired most probably enjoy according to the text？

A. Volunteers.    B. Professional doctors.

C. Police.  D. Government officials.