We were fortunate to retire with good health, to enjoy our retirement.

Herb retired from the Vancouver Post Office on December 30, 1989, and Rose retired from the Bank of Montreal on September 15, 1995.

For years prior to retirement, Herb as the Union's Health & Safety Officer, advised retirees on how to prepare for retirement, and how to get the most out of retirement and stay as healthy as possible.

Because of this knowledge, he was prepared and able to enjoy retirement to the fullest.  He only missed going to work for about two months.  Some habits are hard to break, and for some going to work was a habit, and some took over a year to break the habit.

The first key to enjoying retirement was his wife and children, even though most of the children were already out on their own and raising their own families.  It was just a matter of time before each of them called on their "old man" for some help.  He also had a lot of things to do around home, and even wondered at times, at how he ever managed to do all this while he was working and involved in the Union.

One thing he got into, was doing at least one major thing a day, and not rushing at anything.  This way he kept things in order, and it was much easier on the nerves.  Another thing he did, was to go out camping or fishing, and getting away from it all.

The second key to his enjoying retirement, was staying healthy, and at 72 he was still in perfect health.  Being in perfect health was no accident.  He believed in exercise, eating healthy, and using vitamin and mineral supplements to stay healthy.

Whenever Herb and Rose needed any information about health or medication, they would refer to Rose's many medical books (she has a book on everything), or Herb would search for it on the Internet.  They also avoided the western culture chemical drug pills, with all their side effects, that only treat the symptoms and not the cause of disease.  They stayed healthy by using "alternative medicine" which helps to prevent disease.

And finally, they have switched to eating organic foods and milk as much as possible, especially vegetables and milk, and we have cut down on eating red meat.  It is very seldom that they eat junk food.   Did you know that drinking regular milk robs your bones of calcium?  This can effect children and seniors seriously, also those in between.  How can this happen?  Well, it is caused by the greed for profit, which runs the western culture -- produce more milk.

Dairy farmers in the US have found a way to make cattle give more milk, thereby making more profit, and now the Canadians are doing the same thing.  They do not publicize how they make cattle give more milk.  It was only being made public by some researchers.  If it became public knowledge, then the public would not buy their product.  

The dairy producers add synthetic Vitamin D to cattle, which makes them produce much more milk.  The problem is that this synthetic vitamin goes into the milk, and then it is drunk by children etc.  As the children drink this milk, the vitamin goes from the milk into the children's bodies -- then it robs calcium from their bones.  We have changed to "organic" milk, which is produced without the synthetic vitamin.  It costs a bit more, but it is worth it.  More and more big and small stores are beginnig to sell organic milk now.  Why -- because there is a demand for it now.

Sometimes, your chocolate cravings could mean you have a mineral deficiency. Chocolate contains a relatively high amount of magnesium, and your cravings may indicate you need more. Magnesium is excreted from the body when the adrenal glands are fatigued. Deficiencies also commonly occur with the use of diuretics (water pills), diabetes, pancreas problems, low production of hydrochloric acid from the stomach, or from drinking lots of milk.

In fact, milk is one of the first things to eliminate for people lacking magnesium. The synthetic vitamin D (calciferol) that producers add to milk binds with magnesium and carries it out of the body.

While Brian was getting treatment for his Leukemia, the one mineral that he lacked the most was magnesium.  He would not have made it, without being given magnesium by Intra Venous while in the hospital, and in pill form when he was released from hospital.

In addition, the evidence continues to grow showing that people with heart problems need to make sure they're getting enough magnesium in their diets. Research from all over the world has shown that adequate levels of magnesium can prevent arrhythmias (abnormal heart rates) and even save the lives of heart patients.
Magnesium has many functions throughout the body. Low levels can lead to:

leg cramps;

heart and blood vessel disease and clogging;

kidney stones;

osteoporosis;

psoriasis; and

depression and nervousness.

And finally, we have not drunk public "tap water" for some time.  It is simply not healthful, and is responsible for people damaging so many parts of their bodies, like the liver and kidneys.  Flourine (from flouridated water supplies) also carries magnesium out of the body, which is another reason doctors suggest drinking distilled water, which is the purest form of water.  We have not tried distilled water, however, we do only drink water treated with osmosis and carbon filters, etc.  When we switched to this water, we noticed a big difference in our bodies, within a week.

You have probably noticed that Herb is very concerned about health.  A person cannot earn a living without health, and nor can you enjoy retirement without it.  To have good health, you have to take care of your body -- nobody else will do it,.  Exercise -- go for a good walk every 2nd day or so, and eat healthy foods, and you do not have to go to one of those so-called health spas to exercise.  

A doctor once said, that if he could put exercise in a pill, then that would be the best pill he could prescribe.