I need to write a will.

Over the last few weeks since my father passed away, I’ve learned an awful lot about how money issues continue on after a person’s life ends.  I’m grateful that my dad had everything in order. He and my mom had wills drawn up several years ago.  They also had Power of Attorney paperwork done and signed and distributed to me and my siblings. My mom was already a joint holder on all of their financial accounts.  He even showed me where he had all of the income tax documents stashed so I would be able to file the taxes for him if he wasn’t able (which turned out to be the case).  My dad was an excellent record keeper (though the fact that he did that with paper ledgers rather than spreadsheets makes my head hurt).

But it turns out there is an awful lot of paperwork involved with the end of life. Changing joint accounts to single accounts.  Changing names on car titles. Filing for life insurance.  Updating information with Social Security. Updating information with my dad’s pension and health insurance.  Canceling magazine subscriptions.  And this is all long after dealing with the actual funeral arrangements.  Every time I turn around I’m learning about something else that needs to be done.  And my dad had everything in order.  This is about as easy as it gets. And it’s not easy.

My dad handled all of the financial stuff and every major decision.  My mom never did any of that for herself.  For the last 68 years.  But everything was left in order, so my brother and I were able to step in and figure everything out pretty easily.  I don’t have everything so in order for myself.  I handle all of the financial stuff and my husband is the one left largely in the dark.  If I had suddenly passed away before filing the income tax, my husband wouldn’t have had any idea where to find the things needed to do so.  He wouldn’t know how to log into our bank accounts or credit card accounts.  He wouldn’t know how to find anything.  My father’s passing was a financial wake-up call for me.  I need to get things in order and make sure my husband knows where to find everything.

I need to write a will.  I need to make sure my husband has my power of attorney if he should need it.  I need to get myself organized.  Nobody expects that they will suddenly pass away.  My dad’s death came after a long illness, so we all saw it coming.  But if we hadn’t, he had things ready.  I need to get things ready.  I need to write a will.