Preparing for After We are Gone

Not too many of us want to think of that time when we are dead and gone but no one of us has gotten out alive! So today I was filling out a life insurance policy so there would be funds for my burial, and I began to think of how well launched my family was and how though they enjoy my company, they will be okay without me.

My mother at 55 was left a widow with a pile of bills my father had always paid. The stress on her face weeks after dad's death is something I wouldn't want to wish on anyone.

"I just don't want to leave a mess behind" is what one friend of mine said as he was cleaning out his garage and getting rid of things he had been saving for years. "Why should they be saddled with so much clean up? he paused, and smiled with a good feeling that his kids would be grateful that they didn't have another person to clean up after.

Having a life insurance policy isn't the only thing we can do. We can also keep a list of our bank accounts and utilities including internet services. Keys to the house, lists of people who help maintain the home and their phone numbers, all these small things we do every day that aren't really in one place. Now would be a good time to begin putting together the AFTER I AM HERE list.

A woman in our neighborhood had several children, who, after her death, didn't want to sell the home. They worked together to make it into a VRBO place and so many people are enjoying this home that is managed by a nearby neighbor. This woman planned ahead to allow the home to be refinanced by her offspring. They could then have the house upgraded so it would be vacationer-friendly for those who rented the home in years to come. By keeping the home in the low tax bracket, these wise adult children were sharing their inheritance on a month to month basis.

Another person I know had a fall and didn't regain conciousness. All her information for her children to access was a scavanger hunt. Having that information at the fingertips of one of her children or a sibling would have been a thoughtful preparation for an emergency like this.