*We see the world according to our values and expectations...
Life Expectations
It's a nice day. The sun is up early, but I'm seeing dark clouds in the horizon. I guess it's the same in our life as it is with the sky. Sometimes, all is well and everything seems to be going our way, then we hit a bump in the road and we get distracted in our journey by something unexpected; an accident or maybe illness comes to visit surprising us, even rocking us to the core that we don't know what to do. It's difficult when these things do show their ugly face, but these things should be anticipated somehow because there are things that every human being will chance upon in this lifetime.
I've often heard and read this phrase quoted on social media, that only two things are certain in life: death and taxes. I agree, all of us will eventually die one day. There's no arguing with that. And unless we are living on our own deep in the jungle, or on a deserted island without any contact with civilization, we will pay taxes. Even the homeless contributes to the national treasury if he or she buys a bottle of water or a cigarette from the store. These are facts of life.
Naturally, I got curious as to the origins of this famous quote and found out that it was Benjamin Franklin who said this phrase in a letter to Jean-Baptiste Le Roy in 1789. The wisdom of this man is really off the charts.
It also crossed my mind that this is related to one of The Buddha's teachings: that suffering is a fact of life. Birth, death, old age, and illness are things we cannot escape. and in this regard, the Buddha and Ben Franklin have given us hints on how to prepare for the "unexpected". Since we cannot escape these things, might as well prepare for it.
Birth
If we are reading this, then I assume that you have been born already 😆, hence we cannot do anything about it. But if we have plans for, or "accidentally" got ourselves pregnant, then we can still do something about it. But even before that accident happens, we CAN plan for the birth of our child or to plan NOT to have children at all. This is a choice that we can think about deeply, to contemplate with our partners, and make an informed, logical, compassionate decision. For some women, it might be complicated and dangerous to give birth so the decision is easier to make, but for the rest of us, it can be a difficult decision to make.
Death
*In this case there is an actual intersection of death and taxes.
Interestingly, speaking about death and discussing it with family and friends is taboo for many. I, on the other hand, see it differently. For me, death is a given, a fact of life. The only things that need to be determined (TBD) is the when and how we are going to die. The most obvious thing that we can do is to get a memorial plan - the earlier, the better. Because funeral and burial expenses tend to rise as time goes by. And, apart from the practical aspect of having a memorial plan when the time comes, you can also have a say on things, which will be determined by the type of plan you get.
Another important aspect of planning for your eventual death is estate planning. Here in the Philippines, we have to consider the relevant laws, if you have a Last Will and Testament, or maybe even a trust, which might help reduce estate taxes and provide a way to distribute the assets. Maybe we don't have sizeable assets today, but if we do get lucky and #Hive catches up with the bull market, then we might have something to distribute to our heirs. LOL. Things like the TRAIN law, forced heirship, legitime, etc. are all important matters especially if we come from a wealthy family and we have numerous assets across the country or abroad.
Old Age
For most ordinary citizens here in the Philippines, retirement planning isn't a thing. Especially with young adults that I've talked to, and younger portions of the population. Maybe because they are at the peak of health and have their whole life ahead of them. But the reality is that this is the best time to prepare for when one gets old. What will you do? Where will you live? Will you have the means to live a life that you've always wanted to when you do retire?
Aside from the mandatory government benefits for retirees and senior citizens, the most basic and simplest way to prepare financially for this is to get a life insurance. Get one as early as you can while you are still young so that you can get the best deal possible, the best terms, and the lowest premiums, and you get to maximize the power of compounding to the fullest. Choose the insurance company well because this will impact your policy especially later on when you might need to change some things or add riders to the policy, etc.
Insurance policies cover death as well as accident benefits so this is relevant here and in the previous heading.
There's so much more that we can discuss for this topic but it would make it too long for a blog post so moving on.
Illness
I don't know of anyone who've never been sick in his or her entire life. It's a given. Preparing funds for illness should be straightforward: we or someone in the family will get sick at one point in time so better be prepared. Sadly, most of the people I know do not have health insurance coverage apart from the government owned PhilHealth, and I am guessing that majority of the population here in my country do not have one. Getting an HMO card should have been an easy decision to take with the mindset that it will be a good investment to make and if you do visit the hospital, the expenses will be greatly reduced. Philhealth also provides us with a host of related services so it would be great if we can pair it up with another private health provider.
Conclusion
Aristotle defined human beings as rational animals, but a lot has happened to the human race since then, and we now often get confused. Maybe because it's been a long time, and we have changed. In that sense, mistakes and errors in judgement aren't what it used to be and what holds true then might not be so today. IDK. I am not exempt from the confusion the world brings. So, in as far as this topic goes, I believe we should err on the side of caution and be aware of the dangers and pitfalls that have been discussed and given to us; breadcrumbs intended to guide us in our life. Clues on the things we should prepare for save we be surprised and left speechless when it is all too late. It is up to us to heed the warnings or not.
And that's it for today. If you are still here, I'm grateful for taking the time to read my blog. Hope you are having an awesome weekend. All the best.
Love and peace.
@juanvegetarian
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