Well into our senior years, even the healthier among us need not be reminded of our mortality. We certainly don’t look forward to it, but we don’t stop at simply accepting its inevitability, either.

 

We put things in order in our remaining years both for ourselves and for people we are leaving behind. And here are ways some friends of mine go about it:

 

Letty Reyes-Laurel

 

Peping and I have our motto: Live rich, die poor.

 

It may sound funny, even selfish, but it makes good sense. What we have, we earned. We want our children to have the same satisfaction we’ve had—to enjoy the fruits of their own labor.

 

Oh, we do share—especially when they don’t expect it—but not to the point that they become dependent on us.

 

Regina Roces-Paterno

 

My husband, Manolo, always believed in investing in the education of our children. Today all four of them are independent and financially stable. They have done it on their own, and I’m very proud of that. Indeed, Manolo has been proven right.

 

Being a lawyer, he also believed in estate planning, and at some point began transferring his assets to the family, through a corporation.

 

After 53 years of marriage, I became a widow. More estate planning? I think not. I intend to keep my personal resources during my lifetime. I do not wish to change my lifestyle or have to depend on anyone else. I want full control of my own life, live where I please, go wherever I want to go—God willing, that is.

 

Then, in the end, the children may divide everything left among them and pay the required taxes.

 

Susan Pacheco-Macuja

 

Cesar and I have already turned over our main asset, our house, to our son, with the complete concurrence of our two daughters. No problem there. He takes care of repairs, renovations, maintenance.

 

As for jewelry, they know what goes to whom. When you have only so much, no problem, no fights.

 

Carminda de Leon-Regala

 

I’ve been listening to suggestions on how best to settle the inheritance of our four children—three married, one a widow. I’ve been talking to friends selling insurance with investment components, for instance, but my husband, himself a lawyer, still needs to be convinced.

 

Meanwhile, a new critical consideration has come up. After losing her husband in an accident in the States late last year, our daughter is coming back with her children to live with us, and they have become the priority for the moment.

 

Aurora Asistio-Henson

 

What to do with my assets na kakapiraso? I’m a widow with 10 children and 21 grandchildren. I’m glad Papa and Mama gave me and my siblings something to start with when we got married. My husband and I never forgot how much it had helped us, and planned to do the same thing for our children—for me, it’s a matter of obligation.

 

Mariel Nepomuceno-Francisco

 

We are starting to attend to some kind of estate planning, and it’s a grim and sticky business. For a start, we sat through a seminar on it—I think it’s a must for everyone.

 

So much to do, and so little time. Tackling the issues of taxes, investments, living wills, etc. is definitely not for the indecisive. Anyway, it’s wise to do it while one has full control of one’s faculties, preferably with a legal adviser. But keep in mind: Love your children, but love yourself first.

 

I cannot stress enough the importance of a living will. Though it is, strictly speaking, not about the disposition of our material possessions, it is critical in planning what short future we still have.

 

Edna Zapanta-Manlapaz

 

It’s never too early to start estate planning.

 

There are lawyers who specialize in this, but consulting with them will, of course, cost money; however, you can save on consultation fees (they usually charge by the hour) by anticipating the data they will need from you.

 

Our lawyer (whose expertise is taxation) assisted us with the estate planning, primarily because taxes would have to figure very prominently in selecting our options. He started off by asking what made us decide, finally, to start estate planning: Was there a crisis in the business? A death in the family? A medical diagnosis? A family feud? A lawsuit? Any urgency for estate planning?

 

Even before sitting down with a lawyer, the couple should gather the answers to such questions.