Monterey Herald:  “It may be surprising, but not many people enjoy talking about death and dying. Fewer still relish the thought of planning for their death and the disposition of their worldly possessions.

We plan vacations. We plan bar mitzvahs. If we find out we need surgery, we make a plan.

Here is some news: No one gets out of here alive and, as we know, we can't take it — our possessions — with us.

If this is not news, then why is it that less than 30 percent of people do any estate planning? Worse yet, unlike vacations, bar mitzvahs and non-emergency surgery, most of us have no idea if death will call this week, next year or in 30 years.

At a minimum, all of us should have a will and a health care directive.”