When I wrote about midlife crisis in the 90s, I told readers I spoke to them not as an expert but a veteran.

I could write about midlife career change because I had one. I knew firsthand what it felt like to lose an income and an identity.

And I wrote about loss of self-esteem and confidence because I experienced both. I knew what it felt like to battle self-hate and doubt.

And, finally, I wrote of hope because somehow (with the help of God and friends) I discovered it, along with its power to regain what I had lost (even more).

So as I’m wrestling with some of those same old enemies, I’m reminding myself that hope is just as powerful in retirement as it was in midlife.

I called my midlife website Best Years—because that’s what my middle years became.

I think I’ll call my next one Best Years Too.