SORRY...this got way longer than I thought it would.

You need some background to understand where I'm coming from. My family roots can be traced back to landing on the soil in this great nation of ours, the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA over 150 years before we signed the Declaration of Independence. Just this past year I have found a handful of my ancestors along multiple bloodlines who had fought in Washington's militia, with Washington prior to the Revolution, or had been personally assisted by him. One of the stories could make a Hollywood film as river boat was attacked by Indians on the Ohio River just west of WV, she, her seven children, and several others were taken captive and sold into slavery into various Indian nations throughout Ohio. She escaped, then fought for two years to get them all back, and did!

Like a lot of you, I've lost a lot of people who I was close to. All my grandparents are dead, my parents, aunts and uncles are getting up there in age in their mid 70's.

With all this crazy crap going on the past several years on top of all of this, sometimes it is really difficult for me to see what kind of future my children or future grandchildren are going to have. So, this begs the question, what are you going to leave behind? What is going to be your family's legacy?

We have a farm that has been in our family since 1808. It ain't going no where! We have 400 acres of bottom ground, with two spring fed ponds full of bass, sunfish, and bluegill along with a cabin that my great-grandfather built. We also have a very healthy stream that runs through the middle of the farm. My dad has been working on reforesting a patch of ground, probably 10-20 acres over the past few decades. It's been slow going as the soil on that hilly patch of ground is heavy clay and just terrible for anything. The farm itself is primarily a grain farm, but dad does raise some pure bred Red Angus Beef Cattle. Think of a boxcar with legs. The mature heifers (2yrs) we have weigh 2,000 lbs and are grass fed! It's a small herd of a few dozen and more like pets for dad and my kids show them in 4H.

My brother is the business wiz of the family. He teaches at one of the local HS, business classes, and has several business ventures on the side. He doesn't need to teach financially, but he's so far into it, he's only got a few years left to reach minimum retirement so it kind of hard to back out now. He owns a lawn service/snow removal/landscaping company. He's actually bought out five others through the years. One word of caution, NEVER sign a contract with Walmart using their contract! Long story. He also owns a very profitable dive bar, makes $1,000/night on darts alone! He also has his fingers into some real estate deals and other areas. He was married for a short time, but divorced a few short years later. Neither him or his X-wife have ever remarried or found anyone else and they had no children. When he passes, everything goes to my kids.

Then there is me, the stubborn ass of an engineer. Who probably like a lot of you, went to school, got a job, raised a family, put in your 40-60hrs a week, fund your 401(K), etc. Career wise, I have gotten to work on some fantastic projects. However, I don't really give a crap anyore. I've got nothing to prove to anyone, I'm now the old fart that the young kids think is nuts. What do I leave behind? Over the past 20 years, I have tried, and many times, failed, to pass along nuggets of knowledge to my kids and to others who would listen. Nuggets like don't follow the herd, think for yourself, don't believe what you are told until you can prove it for yourself, don't go into debt, don't buy a car and house after graduating from college buy a rental property instead...build an asset portfolio, U.S. currency is trash buy gold, silver, and bitcoin, etc. Have I don't all of that? No, but I sure wish I had 20-30 years ago! Once you head down a certain path, its awfully hard to correct when you have the full weight of a family on your back to support. Risk, its easy when you are young, much harder when you are older.

So, what do you plan to leave behind?

A bunch of money for the NRA if they get their shit together. If not, a bunch of money for St. Jude's.

If I do it right: Not a damn thing. Nobody to which I wish to leave it.

This is a somewhat regular source of contention between my wife and I. TBH: We're in fairly good shape, financially. As long as SS doesn't disappear or get sharply-trimmed, the same for MediCare, and the markets don't completely tank: We'll outlive our retirement funds.

I don't wish to have it run out before our time, but neither do I wish to leave a bunch on the table when I could've spent it to amuse myself.

Children that have their act together, and grand kids that have their act together.

Debt free education. Which, is taking all I got at the moment.

cool story bro ( on the ancestor stuff)

my direct paternal ancestor stepped of a boat in Jamestown in 1610 or so,


did you join the SAR?


meanwhile, married with no kids,
my brother is divorced, on midlife crisis #57, and no kids,

so my Nieces on the wife's side will get all our crap or what is left of it, when we get hit by that train

Coming from a poor family, I plan to leave multigenerational wealth and raise kids well enough to continue it.

Write down everything you know, and what you have learned of all your family, the good, the bad.

Yes, someone will get twisted knickers, but they can come and yell at your grave.

All the material stuff will go away, but the stories and the information cannot be given a dollar value.


I much enjoyed what little you wrote...

Wealth, wisdom, spiritual understanding……….and a butt-load of guns and ammo.

quote:

Originally posted by SIG4EVA:
Coming from a poor family, I plan to leave multigenerational wealth and raise kids well enough to continue it.

To the moon!!!

Materially? Not a thing.

Other than that some memories that will make people say 'do you remember when he.....'



.

I’m gonna leave my grandsons a couple of acres of land apiece, and a pile of guns and knives. They can do with them what they want, but I’d hope they hang onto the land. I hope they get my love of the outdoors, I spend every minute I can with them messing around on the property.

quote:

Originally posted by Bytes:
Children that have their act together, and grand kids that have their act together.

This was my exact thought before I opened this thread. You can’t do any better. I’m fortunate to be in the same boat as you.

A whole bunch of money to 5 Nephews that probably won't appreciate it or the effort it took to make it.

I have 2 children. My daughter now have her own family, 2 grandkids with her. We drifted apart since our divorce. She chose to not have me involved in her life, which I respect. She doesn’t know it, but she is part of my will. I hope whatever she receive when Im gone, she will put to good use. My 17 year old son, I try to teach him the important values in life I have learned. Most importantly, Integrity, Loyalty and hard work. I will be leaving him my gun, watch and military uniform collection I have. I just hope he will be interested in those and not turn around and sell them. I will crawl out of my grave. I also left some for my mom (if I pass before her). She made a lot of sacrifices for me and my sister. Majority will be left for my wife. I asked her to pay off the house. And should she decide to re-marry, to transfer all of OUR assets to our son first.

Other than that, I hope I will leave good memories for my family. I tried my best to be a good father, husband, son, brother, friend. I hope I did OK.

I am leaving whatever I have to my wife. Whatever she has left over, she will decide who gets what. It is not my concern at that time. If she (heaven forbid) passes first, whatever I have left over at the time of my death will be evenly disbursed to my two step children. It is not my desire to be judge of rewarding one over the other.

A decent library, guns, musical instruments and some money. If they want to dispose of the rest, I don’t care.

Don’t plan on leaving anything - no family. I will either give everything away so that I die broke or do what it takes so that not one penny will go to the feds

Well educated and well rounded children. I have already taught several people a skill and work ethic that they can use to make a nice living.

I plan on leaving my boys wisdom, as well as the guns I've gotten and whatever money we have left after my wife and I are gone. I made a bad business move about twenty years ago that set us back about 250K. Rather than keeping the details from my boys I told them everything in the hope that they won't make the same mistakes I did.

I also have left them a work ethic that already has served each of them well. This was one of the few things pasted down to me( we didn't have much growing up)and it has served me well. They have seen me start a business from nothing, getting up at 0430 and working 24 hours when needed, and staying at it 23 years before we sold a couple years ago.

The last thing is a history, such as it is, of my family. I want them to know that they are part of something bigger than themselves. Oh, did I mention the guns?

Jim