When I retired and closed my law office a few years ago, I had to bring my office artwork home. That included about 8 or 10 beautiful patriotic oil paintings, reproductions, art posters, and even plaster busts of George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and Thomas Jefferson. And a full sized American flag on a pole.

Our home already had its own artwork on nearly every available wall, and this artwork didn’t really lend itself all that well to a family residence. So all the artwork was just stacked up near a wall in the back room. I couldn’t stand to part with such lovely pieces which I had become so accustomed to at work. So what to do? It can’t continue to still just languish there where it is!

I loved being surrounded by such patriotic beauty in my law office. It’s hard to part with these things. The time has come, however, to make a decision. I think I will have to hold on to a couple of pieces. And I intend to have my now adult children come by to see if they should like any particular piece. But that will probably not take care of everything. Some will merely have to be donated to charity.

I know I should have seen this coming. As an estate-planning attorney, I wrote the book “You Can’t Take It With You, So How Will You Leave It Behind?” with the subtitle “A Plain English Guide to Wills and Trusts.” So now I’m asking myself “how will I leave it behind?”

What do you have in your possession that you can’t stand to part with? Do you need to make some decisions about your personal property before it causes a problem with your inheritance? Just remember, you can’t take it with you, so how will you leave it behind? Don’t let things turn into an unresolved problem for your family!