Well, I guess the biggest fear is of dying alone and being eaten by an Alsatian -- no wait, that's Bridget Jones' biggest fear.

But it's there for all of us, I would think (minus the Alsatian). I once mentioned this fear to another single friend of mine, and he said "everyone dies alone" -- when I said that married people didn't, he said that half of them do! So I think this is just part of existing. To allay this fear, I've been trying to read and think about death, and accepting it as a part of life. I'm trying to discover whether I can come to terms with it before it happens.

I worry that there won't be anyone to take care of me if I get sick or feeble, but I'm one of those "I don't want to be a burden" people anyway, so when I can no longer care for myself I plan to already have a place to go to (unless this occurs today, because I haven't actually done anything about it yet).

But again, I think these are universal fears, the fear of the unknown, the fear of death. I actually picture my retirement as really pleasant. I own a house, I have my pets, I have always been a homebody, so I envision a lot of reading and relaxing and playing with animals and socializing with friends and just generally enjoying my leisure time. I have a good retirement plan and I live in hope that we'll elect a Democratic president who will make sure that I get my social security.

Basically, I have created a life that I really like, and that's what allays many of my fears about the future.

Catherine
http://ourladyofperfection.blogspot.com