grandparenting Last will and testament
W e still call them our “last will and testament,” but what they really are today is just legal documents—a careful and often tedious list of what goes to who when we die. We have forgotten about the most import- ant part, the testament . The writing of a last will and testament dates back thousands of years, to ancient Greece and Rome, and it used to be much more than a who-gets-what list. Writing one’s will and testament once included a chance for persons to express not only their “will” about what would be done with their material possessions, but about the kind of lives that was hoped for their descen- dants, and the faith and values they would possess. In other words, the document was (and can still be today) a chance to express one’s full will or desire as to what should happen—not only to possessions, but to posterity. A “testament” can also mean a “testimony” of what you believe is true and important, of your faith and your values.
BY RICHARD AND LINDA EYRE
7 GRANDP arenting
Made with FlippingBook. PDF to flipbook with ease