After he retires from many years of teaching at Brookfield, a boarding school for boys in England, Mr. Chips moves to Mrs. Wickett's house near the school. He is peaceful and happy here, because, despite the sadness of losing his wife after a brief marriage, he can look back on a happy and fulfilling life spent as a beloved teacher.

Second, he is a man of few and simple wants. A cup of tea, a warm fire, and a detective novel are enough to keep him happy and content. He enjoys remembering the old days at Brookfield, a school he liked from the beginning when he first arrived on a sunny June day.

Finally, Chips carries a sense of humor with him into old age. He even sees the humor in aging, and often when Mrs. Wickett comes in with his tea, she finds him crying tears that are mixture of remembering humorous incidences and experiencing a sweet sadness over days gone by.

Overall, because he has lived a good, quiet, and honorable life, Mr. Chips has a peaceful old age, looked in on and cared for by those who cherish him.