Proper Preparation | Amano Writing Club

"Eighty percent of success is preparation."
That was my father's favorite saying, a man who was dedicated to his work.

Whether it was about my studies or when we were going on a trip, every time I, his daughter, consulted him about something, that was the first thing he would say. When I was a child, I thought he was annoying, but now that I am a working adult, I have begun to understand what he meant.

Then, my father suddenly passed away at seventy-eight.
While I was cleaning up in a daze, I found an envelope in his drawer.

It was addressed to me and written on it was "Regarding the Funeral."
Wondering when he had done this, I opened it to find everything detailed, from his preferred funeral hall and the types of flowers to a list of people to invite and the direction he wanted for his posthumous Buddhist name.
The man who kept telling me to be properly prepared had even prepared for his own death. I thought it was a very fitting end for him.

As we read the last line, my mother and I laughed while crying.
There was no way to prepare for that.

"For the return gifts for funeral offerings, about 3,000 yen is enough. Don't put a burden on your mother."

I am participating in Mitsuru Amano's Amano Writing Club.

▼ This time, I learned about "preparation" through this note.

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