[The following guest post is authored by Michelle Weilert, a professional writer of stage and screen, who is also the creator of Legacy Letters, http://www.yourlegacyletter.com/]
Some successful financial advisors will be familiar with the idea of a “legacy letter,” or an “ethical will,” which actually is not a new concept in the financial and estate planning world. Sitting down to write one is a different story.
That’s where I come in. I am a storyteller and when I write these letters for my clients, I’m telling the stories of people’s lives: how they lived, how they loved, and what they (hopefully) left behind.
It is said that a parent’s life is a child’s guidebook, and if that is true, then these letters serve as the written version of that. For unlike wills and trust, they deal in emotional inheritance, rather than physical. They infuse value and meaning, along with a deeply personal connection, onto the lives of people who are long gone but remembered.
Having always been fascinated by oral history, I feel honored to be a part of turning it into a permanent testimony, one that cannot be distorted by time and memory. Every time I write down another story by way of letter, I know I am giving a gift to future generations who will be grateful for these words some day. Any doubt I ever had about that has been erased by the countless times someone has told me, “I wish I had my [grandparents’/parents’/siblings’] stories written down.”
No one should wait until it’s too late. We can all give our children the gift we wish our parents had given us. Our lives are all a collection of stories, and we can have a hand in how they are written and remembered, ensuring that, truly, nothing is left unsaid.
Michelle Weilert is a professional writer of the stage and screen who lives in Los Angeles, CA. She is also the creator of Legacy Letters, a Texas-based company. More information can be found at her website: www.yourlegacyletter.com , or she can be contacted directly at yourlegacyletter@gmail.com
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