Not A Pleasant Thought...

This post is going to be a little depressing. I was supposed to fly to Texas to visit my friend and have a great time celebrating my birthday with "just the girls". I did not know until the day before I left that my friend's mom passed away the night before from an unexpected heart complication. I'd tell you what it was, but it's a word I cannot possibly pronounce or spell. It was rare, I guess. I still went to be a support for my friend, who quite frankly is a mess. I cannot say the trip was fun. It was enlightening though.
What I learned was this...no matter what age you are, make sure you have a life insurance policy to cover your funeral expenses. A BASIC funeral costs $8,000-10,000. You heard me. That's for cremation in a plain pine box. If you want a nice funeral, you are looking at $20,000 or more. (Maybe Texas is more expensive, I don't know the costs in Utah.) Secondly, make sure your family and loved ones know what your wishes are after you die. Burial or Cremation? Memorial service or full-fledged funeral? Open or closed casket? Who gets your belongings/property/savings? If you have small children, who will raise them? Will you split them up? None of these things are pleasant to think about, but they sure are a burden on your family if you have never talked it over. I felt so bad for my friend because she had NO IDEA what her mother wanted. They didn't discuss it. Her death was very sudden and unexpected. Now my heartbroken friend is scrambling to make arrangements that she "thinks" her mom would like. And it rests all on her shoulders because her dad doesn't even know how to pay the bills. Her mom did everything. Everything but plan ahead. She was 62.
Death is hard enough on the living without all the decisions that unavoidably follow.
Just think about it.
Talk it over with someone.
Life is so short, so plan ahead.

*****Stepping off of soapbox******