Retirement is a caesura already determined on the day of assumption of office. With an abundance of tasks and a long period of enthusiasm the turning point slips out of memory or is simply repressed. We should have the good sense to think about alternatives in advance after running a hospital for so many years. There is an abundance of tasks within and outside the profession. The continuation of long established collegial alliances all over the world presents an excellent opportunity to maintain surgical skills as well as to retain motivation in trauma care and to obtain a broader view of human society.