Estate planning jokes
Estate planning is all about making the necessary arrangements for what you want to happen to your estate should you become incapacitated or when you die. A comprehensive estate plan allows you to determine how your assets will be distributed and to whom when you pass away, but it also allows you to choose a guardian for your children, plan for incapacity, and determine who will make healthcare and financial decisions on your behalf when you can no longer do so.
Estate planning ensures that your wishes will be carried out while making a difficult and emotional transition easier for your family. It is a very difficult topic for many people to discuss because it’s about facing your mortality, and about money, two topics people really like to avoid.
Humor is one way of dealing with a difficult situation, so look for some ways to break the ice and make it easier to initiate a conversation about estate planning with your loved ones. Instead of directly broaching the subject about your plans or those of your loved ones, why not try easing the tension and discomfort with some laughter. Perhaps, you could start the discussion off with some jokes. Believe it or not, there are some great estate planning jokes! We’ve provided a few examples to help get you started.
Our personal favorite
- Mrs. Agren, a 5th grade math teacher, posed the following problem to one of her classes: “A wealthy man dies and leaves ten million dollars. One-fifth is to go to his wife, one-fifth is to go to his son, one-sixth to his butler, and the rest to charity. Now, what does each get?” After a very long silence in the classroom, Little Mikey raised his hand. The teacher called on Little Mikey for his answer. With complete sincerity in his voice, Little Mikey answered, “A lawyer!”
- Determined to prove the saying wrong, “you can’t take it with you”, an old lawyer on his deathbed requested that his wife place money in the attic directly above his bed. His wife and butler honored the request. Soon after the old lawyer passed away, his wife and butler inspected the attic to find that the money was still there. His wife immediately turned to the butler and said, “The fool! I knew he should have had me put it in the basement!”
Taking things seriously
Research has shown just how much people try to avoid talking about estate planning and the issues that are involved such as aging, money, end-of-life care, and, yes, death. However, if you should become incapacitated or die without an estate plan in place, your loved ones may have to deal with long, drawn-out legal battles and the costs involved with probate. And your estate may end up not being distributed as you would have wished.
Having these conversations sooner rather than later is the first step, whether you are a parent and want to discuss your wishes with your children or children who want to ensure that their parents have a comprehensive estate plan in place.
At the Law Office of David W. Foley, living trust attorney in San Diego, California, we specialize in creating living trusts as part of a comprehensive estate plan. We understand that dealing with the death of a loved one is a very stressful and emotional time; our goal is to help your family avoid the cost and time of probate and to make this difficult transition a little bit easier.
In addition to creating living trusts, we offer a wide variety of legal services for all of your estate planning needs.