A Time To Live And A Time To Die

So I was thinking about the downfalls of getting older. I’ll be 40 next year and I’m actually really excited about it. I’m not completely where I want to be and far from where I expected to be in life at this age, but I’m okay with that. I feel like I’m on the right path to reach my purposeful destiny and I’m content. It’s weird, but as I type this I’m thinking that this is the happiest I’ve been in my adult life! I look forward to the next level of freedom and euphoria that I’m certain 40 will bring...more on all of this in a future post.
At this point you’re probably asking yourself, “If she’s so happy, what are the downfalls??” It’s this, as we get older, our loved ones are aging as well. The realization that my parents are not immortal has hit me like a ton of bricks and I see it happening all around me. Of course we know that people can’t live forever, but we still tend to think that our parents are exceptions to that rule of life. To see their bodies become more fragile is a shock to our psyche that forces us to accept the reality of this temporal existence.
Earlier this year, my father was faced with a major illness and that’s the first time I had to seriously think about the possibility of life without him or either of my parents for that matter. It freaked me out, but it also caused me to put some things into perspective and work on putting some other things in order. I’ll share with you the top 3 take-aways I gained from the experience.

1. ​It’s important to spend time with those you love and let them KNOW that you love them. Another concept that we know to be true, but one we don’t consistently take advantage of. We take for granted that a person is just always going to be here and when we do spend time, it isn’t always cherished. Since experiencing such a close call with my father, I find myself just sitting with him more, watching tv or talking without my phone as a distraction, and saying “I love you” more. I no longer (for the most part, lol) complain about him telling me the same stories over and over for the last almost 40 years because I know I’ll miss those stories one day.
2. Make sure that your elderly family members’ affairs are in order as far as medical insurance. Since my father had never been sick, my family and I were not prepared for the 18 day hospital stay, the follow-up appointments, or the medications that he would need to take. He had basic Medicare coverage and wasn’t aware of the other options that he should have signed up for upon retirement. You should also have discussions about life insurance, other financial planning, wills, medical decisions, etc. It’s a tough conversation to have, but necessary.
3. Make sure that you have your own affairs in order. You want to ensure you’re covered in case of an illness, but you also want to make sure that things are in order upon your passing. I don’t want my family to deal with any extra stress in addition to their grieving. Have beneficiaries in place, let someone know where your important documents are, how they can retrieve passwords, etc.