quote of the day

This is the true joy in life, the being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one; the being a force of nature instead of a feverish selfish clod of ailments and grievances complaining that the world will not devote itself to making you happy. I am of the opinion that my life belongs to the whole community and as long as I live it is my privilege to do for it whatever I can. I want to be thoroughly used up when I die, for the harder I work, the more I live. I rejoice in life for its own sake. Life is no 'brief candle' to me. It is sort of a splendid torch which I have a hold of for the moment, and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it over to future generations."
--George Bernard Shaw

I don't normally comment on these quotes. I love to read them to search out some insight that will help me along life's journey. This one is problematic. "Thoroughly used up when I die"? I sometimes feel I've been used up by my former employer and now it's time to sit on the porch. Yet I've been confronted by so many opportunities since I retired. I've read that if you see a need and you have the ability to meet that need, that constitutes a calling. So, is it my calling to work for the volunteer fire dept.? It may be. They have no shortage of able bodied young men to respond to emergencies, but I seem to be the only one with enough computer savvy to help them comply with the government bureaucracy. I know that once I have it all set up things will quiet down, but right now I'm missing my leisure. I've stopped painting. I'm not selling anything on eBay or Amazon. I guess I just need to find some balance between community service and my own interests and try to fit all the pieces of the puzzle together. In addition to the fire dept. duties, I'm going to have to find time for gardening, remodeling, painting, reading books, playing with the grandkids, traveling, and online selling. I'm trying to remember how I budgeted my time when I was "working".