After the loss of my father in April of 2015, we were drawn to a small metal box where he kept “important papers”. On the front it said “PERSONAL”. On the top, it had a sticker with his name and address. The tin had been kept on a shelf in the spare bedroom. While my dad had files with A-Z folders and they too had “important documents”, but it was the metal box that was most intriguing. When we took it down, it was bulky and heavy and had a key hole and lock but, at the snap of a finger opened without concern.
The important papers in his life were interesting. There were little notes indicating in his handwriting a policy for this or that, scribbled notes about important things to him such as quotes and anecdotes, and life insurance policies for all three of his children. Too, there were a few notes and human interest stories which he loved.
He saved the original mortgage document of the first house he and our mother had bought together and there were old fire and insurance papers; outdated and unused. Each old document was interesting to view.
But what I loved most in going through his important papers was a life insurance policy taken out on me when I was only 3. It was a term life policy with a value of only $1,500 but was taken out by my parents who loved me at a very young age.
The premiums for the policy were only $26.56 but to think they were paying that kind of money in 1956- That was a lot of money to a young couple trying to make their way. The term policy would be held all of these years and now with an option to cash in or keep offering the maximum value at death.
Viewing something like this is so special when it’s noted that my parents had me in mind all of those years ago.
We’re not finished going through the little metal box and in fact, we’ve shuffled through it several times trying to figure out each document, its meaning and the reason for it. We’re still drawn to it, not necessarily for the documents inside but for the meaning behind each pieces of paper.