Last Updated on January 20, 2016
Sometimes, it is the striving itself which has propelled the continuation of action without thought, constancy without interruption, deterioration without remedy, and life without living; and amidst the automatic pilot which has carried forth the daily treadmill of forward progression, one looks back and wonders, Where did the time go? Where did the concept come from — of unmanned space flights, drones without onboard pilots and driverless cars?
Yet, we need only look at ourselves in the mirror, and realize that the reflection which looks back is merely an image which disappears when the eyes close, the lights are turned off, or we simply walk out from the room. Who we are; the essence of our very make-up; the surface appearance which belies the core and centrality of the bundle which aggregates to define the whole; is it the effort, or merely the thrill of the trying, which compels the hunt?
Time passes, but we rarely notice; age comes upon us, and like that proverbial thief in the dead of night, the wrinkles form like caverns scraping at the earthen clay, forming ruts and ravages over evolutionary quietudes of moonlit shores. We strive too hard.
For Federal employees and U.S. Postal workers who come to a point of recognition that all of the effort in the world will not save their jobs because of the medical condition which continues to deteriorate and impact one’s ability and capacity to perform the essential elements of the positional duties empowered, the necessity and realization of filing for Federal Disability Retirement benefits through the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, whether the Federal or Postal employee is under FERS, CSRS or CSRS Offset, may come at different times, alternate phases, and indiscriminate moments when least expected.
Time can be a friend for medical conditions, but when the treadmill of striving takes us nowhere, the moment may have passed, and long since left us, beyond the period when we should have already filed. Doctors have already spoken; friends have already warned; and family members have shared their concerns well beyond intrusion of courtesy. Letting go of one’s past glories is often the hardest part of the process, but let go we must, and begin to prepare, formulate and file for Federal or Postal Disability Retirement benefits through OPM.
Sincerely,
Robert R. McGill, Esquire