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The end is the beginning

By BRADY DENNIS
Published March 10, 2007

ADVERTISEMENT [Times photo: Chris Zuppa ] Dr. Marc Yacht and his wife, Helen Merchan, share lunch in the Withlacoochee State Forest on his first day of retirement.

He's already cleared out his office, attended the farewell party, listened to the speeches, said his goodbyes.

His three kids have grown and moved on. His gray hairs keep multiplying.

And now, five decades of work are behind him. He's delivered newspapers, sold furs in a farmers market, manned a grocery store register, helped customers in a clothing store, taught middle school English, endured medical school, attended to the sick and dying.

Only a day ago, he was in charge of 200 employees at the Pasco County Health Department. Then he woke up as a 66-year-old man with no job, no obligations, no meetings, no more need for neckties.

What does a man do on the first day of the rest of his life?

This man, on this day, gets up with the sunrise, puts on coffee and reads the morning paper. He packs a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and slips on his hiking shoes. He drives east into Hernando County. He takes a walk in the woods with his wife.

And out there among the Spanish moss and the saw palmettos and the haunting cypress trees, he talks about his plans. He wants to write plays and short stories, maybe some poetry. He wants to take his wife to Spain. He hopes for a few grandchildren to spoil.

He wonders if he'll be happy, if he'll find a purpose. He decides he will. "I'll evolve," he says.

It's a Thursday morning. The air is warm. The sun is shining.

He listens to the leaves crunch underfoot. He breathes in the fresh air. He gazes at a lake. He takes his time.

Out here, with nothing but the forest and the future ahead, he understands that there are endings and beginnings.

And sometimes, they look just the same.

Editor's note: 300 Words presents glimpses of everyday life that often go unnoticed. This is the last in a series.

[Last modified March 10, 2007, 05:50:49]