On occasion a few of us will spontaneously gather in the office and find ourselves discussing the latest series of events that didn’t have to be.  One particular discussion centered around how many people don’t know where the important papers are stored.  You know . . . wills and deeds and insurance policies and car titles and such.  Families will come in to make arrangements and begin the conversation with “I can’t find Mama’s Social Security card and I don’t know her number.  How can we get that?” or “I know my brother had insurance but I don’t know the company and I can’t find the policy . . .”  The Social Security number is simple, but the insurance, not so much.  We’ll offer all kinds of helpful suggestions, but unfortunately, at that point it’s too late for the most helpful suggestion of all.

As we were conversing, one of the secretaries volunteered that they have a fireproof safe where they keep their important papers.  Excellent!  “And who knows the combination to this safe?” I inquired.  Answer:  she and her husband.  Good.  “Do y’all ever go anywhere together?”  Well, yes.  “So, what happens when something happens to both of you . . . at the same time?”

Silence.

Dynamite could be a possible option, but there will most probably be a confetti shower after the blast.  The better option is to trust a third person with the combination.

Everyone should make it a point to gather their important documents into one central location, whether it’s a fireproof safe at home, or a lock box at the bank, or even the refrigerator.  Don’t laugh.  That’s one place that is constantly opened and always searched.  Maybe not for documents, but I promise you, they’ll be found along with the leftovers.  Don’t, however, make the mistake of believing that’s a safe spot.  The fridges of today are no longer fire resistant metal boxes, so any vast quantity of flames will destroy both of the aforementioned.  Also, anyone who resides in your house and is hungry will have the opportunity to be all up in your business.  But at least your stuff won’t be lost . . .

Do you still have living parents?  If so, do they still trust you?  If you answered yes to both questions, then make it a point to sit down with them and record where all the important stuff is stashed while you can.  I asked the trust question because my mother reached a point of non-trust where most people were concerned, but especially my brother and me, not because we had ever given her just cause but due to the dementia that was slowly consuming her brain.  Once that trust begins to fade you’ll find it almost impossible to get any useful information, much less a detailed accounting of all the things you’ll need when they no longer do.  And should you find their mental faculties fading, it would be wise to secure said important stuff before it is hidden away without your knowledge.

While we’re on that subject, failing mental health is something many of us will face someday, so while we’re of sound mind (the body part is optional for these purposes) what better time to entrust some trustworthy soul with the treasure map to our chest ‘o stuff?  Of course, to draw the map you must first have the location, which takes us back to the first sentence of paragraph five—the one that begins “Everyone should make it a point . . .”  Your children will thank you, or your siblings, or whomever is your legal next-of-kin/responsible party.  Just look at it this way.  You know how frustrating it is when you’re running late and you can’t find your keys?  Or you want to browse the latest on Facebook and your glasses are AWOL?  Multiply that by a million, and you will know just how families feel when they need the important papers . . . and they’re nowhere to be found

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