THY WILL BE DONE

Death is never the closure that anyone of us imagines or expects it to be. Even when the remains of a departed soul are consigned to the earth or turned to ashes as they wished, some of their legacies have a strange way of returning to wreak havoc and destroy the peace of those left behind. I am aware of many instances where the lack of a 'will' has caused many conflicts and irreparable rifts within close knit families. This is less so when a will is present, but it is never a guarantee.

- By CHANDRI PERIS

A programme on BBC radio highlighted one such case recently which resulted in many people calling the radio station to share their experiences with regards to the wills and wishes of their dear departed and the problems they encountered while trying to honour them. The story on the radio was about ailing millionaire who passed away leaving a will. He had left all his wealth to two of his three daughters. The two daughters who benefitted from his will had been with him, cared for him, and visited him constantly in the last years leading up to his death. He had left nothing to his other daughter and her four children for the simple reason that they had not even bothered to visit him or even enquire after him for the last five to six years of his life. The disinherited, contested the 'will' in court, demanding a part of the fortune claiming that it was theirs by 'right.' This claim led to a lengthy investigation during which the executor of the will had to provide proof that the so called 'will' was written at a time when the deceased was 'of sound mind.' After many months of wrangling with solicitors and paying enormous legal bills, the case was summarily flung out of court! Incidents such as this have made me think about several similar issues that have occurred and are still ongoing within my own family and amongst friends and acquaintances as well.