Always Moving Forward
One couple’s secret to happiness: Stay active, creative, and adventurous.
Books inspired Arline Lieberman’s lifelong interest in other places and cultures.
“I wanted to know what’s on the other side of the ocean, or the other side of the mountain,” she recalls. “I wanted to want to travel to other places that were different.”
Her interest in travel began long before retirement. Warren, her husband, had already been traveling for work, including one memorable summertime trip to Munich, Germany. Arline and two of their three children came along, and they had a “spectacular” time visiting mountains, lakes, and museums. She believes that trip “whet his appetite” for travel as a creative pursuit.
The Liebermans, married since 1958, retired young (age 59) in the mid-1990s—Arline from a career in education, and Warren from a career in metallurgical engineering. From that point forward, they became professional tourists.
“With our retirement incomes, social security, and investments, we were able to see the world,” Warren says. “Over the last 20 to 25 years, we have visited all seven continents, including Antarctica. We have nine grandchildren, and we’ve taken them along on several trips. We’ve seen some fantastic geology, both here in the U.S. and around the world, and been exposed to so many different cultures.”
The partial list of countries the Liebermans have visited includes Argentina, Australia, China, Costa Rica, Croatia, Egypt, France, Iceland, Italy, Japan, Laos, Mexico, Morocco, New Zealand, Peru, Scotland, Thailand, Turkey, and Vietnam. They have fond memories of almost every trip, but some stand out in memory more than others: Turkey for its culture, people, and contrast in geology; and Antarctica for its breathtaking landscape.
“When you go to Antarctica, you’re looking at magnificent desolation,” Warren says. “Magnificent desolation and penguins.”
Not every aspect of their travels has been enjoyable, of course, but Arline says even the less than pleasant parts became learning experiences.
“Some folks around the world have peculiar tastes in food,” she says. “At an outdoor stand in Thailand, they had a dish called jumping shrimp, where they put acid in a bowl of live shrimp. We visited a place in Iceland where they were curing shark meat, and they offered it to tourists with a shot of alcohol. Certain food and drinks become an acquired taste.”
Warren admits he has reached a point in his life where around-the-world trips are “beyond my capabilities.” Although his globetrotting days may have come to an end, he often shares slideshows of their trips with their fellow residents at Dunwoody Village in Newtown Square.
Arline and Warren both have other passions. Over the years, they have volunteered their time in service to others; he worked as a docent for the American Helicopter Museum and Education Center in West Chester, while she recorded audio books for the blind and dyslexic, and did work for Youth Aid Panels to help young people who had lost their way. In addition, he does part-time consulting work, and she paints, writes, and contributes to Dunwoody’s in-house publication.
“You have to keep learning and moving,” Arline says. “You have to use your energy to continue to be creative.”
Warren adds, “I agree. It’s a wonderful thing to be able to use our education and keep ourselves busy.”
Published (and copyrighted) in Suburban Life magazine, August 2021.
