Here at Life at Hand®, we are constantly emphasizing the value of expressing love by taking the long view, and getting our affairs in order so that our loved ones will not be unnecessarily burdened by our aging and death.
Usually, what we’re talking about is practical stuff like long-term care plans and how we want our assets to be divided when we die. But today, I want to talk about something a little different: your ethical will.
For those of you unfamiliar with the term, an ethical will (also called a spiritual will or legacy letter) is a non-legal document that can be included with your last will and testament and/or a living will as a way to communicate the intangibles that you would like those you leave behind to benefit from: essentially, your experience, values, wisdom, and love.
On a practical level, your ethical will can serve to explain why you are leaving what assets to whom, but there are a great many other valuable reasons to create one. And many of those reasons are things you and your loved ones will benefit from in the present, not some time off in the future. For instance, creating an ethical will can help you document your stories and history for others to learn from. It also can help to create a vivid and comprehensive tapestry of what you have accomplished in your lifetime and what values have been the threads throughout.
There are many varieties of ethical wills; they can be very short and focused or they can be complex and sprawling. There are many resources online to help you get started. You can learn more about the how and why of an ethical will at Life Legacies. Also, at JackCarneyLaw.com, you can download an Ethical Will Workbook to serve as a template that walks you through the process.
You could also start with a shorter, modified version of an ethical will, by writing individual one-page legacy letters to your loved ones and giving them as holiday gifts. For these, you might want to focus on what each person means to you, how they have blessed your life and how you want to bless theirs.
For seniors who have endured many years of holiday shopping ordeals, this could be a great way to avoid straining to figure out what to get everyone yet again, and fighting the crowds at the mall. And what could be more valuable to the ones you love than receiving the gift of your wisdom, appreciation, and blessing in the form of heartfelt words?