Safe Deposit Contents

No greater incentive to review my most vital documents than referral by my cardiologist to an oncologist.  While my visit and lab work that followed do not seem desperate, I probably should have reviewed my will and Advance Directives periodically without this external prod.  They are housed in a safe deposit box at the bank where we maintain our checking account.  My last trip there was not long ago.  I deposited the title of my car which the finance company mailed to me after my final payment.  Eventually, I or my Executor will need to sell that car. On that visit, I did not look at any contents, just placing the title atop other items already there.  While we've rented the box for more than forty years, the original branch closed a few years ago, forcing us to rent a new box at the branch near us.  New location, box number, and keys.  Prior to dropping off my title, I had never signed in at the new location.  At the old location I only visited every few years, not looking at its contents more than once or twice previously.

So what did I find there?  Mostly important stuff along with small expensive items.  In a plastic bag sat a few clipped hairs from our first cat who died suddenly and prematurely.  And a gold ring with a ruby that my late father valued and gave to me.  I've never worn it.  Some jewelry of my wife's, including her engagement ring.  The expensive watch that my wife gave me for our 25th anniversary.  I think I only wore it to special occasions twice, and did not recall that it had been stored there.  It sits in an outsized box that I did not recognize.  Opening it took effort, but once opened I recognized that watch immediately.

Papers included appraisals of that jewelry and other pieces.  The box also had a VCR cassette labelled A Tour of our house.  No doubt also related to documentation of expensive items like furniture for future insurance claims.  I wonder if we should do this again, this time with a CD and images in The Cloud.

Other papers referred to our house.  The Deed.  The Surveyor's map of property lines. Our original mortgage documents, long since satisfied.

And papers needed as our lives reach their conclusions.  Wills, Advance Directives, Revocable Trusts.  Those things taken home to copy so that my home strong box will have copies to share with my financial advisor and our doctors.  Then return the originals.  Once returned, I expect that safe deposit box to remain dormant and unaccessed indefinitely.