It snowed again this weekend. Of course, after the last storm, I made plans for this winter. The weather service has predicted colder than normal with higher than normal amounts of snow. After shoveling the driveway and sidewalks after the last storm, I planned.
Planning Ahead
I talked with the neighbor across the street to ask if they would be using their mongo snowblower if we got over 9 inches of snow. They said they certainly would, and they also have two sons who would be willing to come shovel for me. I encouraged them and admitted I am willing to pay for the service – shovels or snow blower.
My planning included charging the battery for my mini snowblower. It can move up to 9 inches of snow. The final part of my planning was to not wait until the storm ended to deal with what the storm was putting on the ground.
Dealing with the Storm
When I got up at 4:30 am, the snow had just started – only a skiff was on the ground. As I fixed breakfast and did laundry, I monitored the snow depth and the drifting. About 10:00 am, the clouds lifted and the snow let up a little. Neighbors up and down the street grabbed their snow blowers and shovels and set to work.
I took my cue, dressed in my sub-zero clothes, popped the battery in the snow blower, and started to work. It was so much easier to remove snow with the machine instead of the shovel. I cleared the driveway, the entire apron, and the short sidewalk with the blower. Then I got the shovel and did the sidewalk across the front of the house. The snow had drifted on the sidewalk and was closer to ten inches, so rather than overwork my small machine, I shoveled. It was good exercise and I felt invigorated rather than drained when I finished. I am all for planning ahead!
Estate Planning
End of life can be like an unplanned storm. If you are the one whose life is ending and you don’t have powers of attorney in place — especially for health care — then the storm is swirling and you are unable to move the snow yourself, but no one can move the snow for you. If it is a loved one whose life is ending and they have no powers of attorney, you are probably feeling very frustrated as you watch the snow stack up and you know that because they did not plan, you are unable to move the snow for them.
If it is someone else whose life has ended, then, suddenly, you are dealing with a lot of snow with no plan of how to move it or what to do when you do move it. Suddenly, you are the one in charge, and if the snow blower doesn’t work you have to shovel, figure out what to do with the snow, and keep moving forward.
Planning takes action. It takes facing the future and deciding how to handle the circumstances the future brings. Go talk to a lawyer, like a Montana estate planning attorney from Silverman Law Office, today. Get the battery (powers of attorney and will) signed now. Don’t wait until the storm has hit or is over before giving someone the equipment to move the snow and letting someone know what to do with the snow as they move it. Silverman Law Office can help you plan ahead.