EP38: Becky Robison: My Parents Are Dead, What Now?

You lose both parents. Then the legal paperwork starts, and no one hands you a manual. Becoming the executor of an estate after a parent dies feels like a job with no training. In this episode of The Currency of Grief, host Justin Weidenfeld sits down with Becky Robison, author of My Parents Are Dead, What Now? and co-host of the Bitching and Mourning podcast, who went through this herself and wrote the guide she needed.   Becky found her dad's will and living trust in a box under the Christmas decorations, then spent months guessing what came next. Her mom had died a few years earlier, so when her dad passed, the whole job landed on her with no roadmap. She learned the probate court process from scratch and explains how her dad’s lawyer failed to tell her that she needed to sign an acceptance of trust before acting as the successor trustee.   You hear how assets left outside her dad’s living trust sent her to probate court, turning a few gaps in the estate plan into a years-long legal detour. Then comes the human side. Losing a parent flattened her, yet friends showed up with a Twister mat and kept her standing while she handled the accounts. Becky stays honest about the fear of settling an estate alone and the mistakes she made along the way.   Nobody warns you what being the executor of an estate after a parent dies truly involves. If you are facing this road or want to spare your own family, press play. Becky gives you the plain, funny walkthrough no one handed her. Follow the show and start with the first real steps.   Episode Breakdown: 00:00 Meet Accidental Death Expert Becky Robison, Author Of My Parents Are Dead, What Now? 04:46 Losing A Mother To Alcoholism And A Long Decline 07:55 Dad's Stage Four Pancreatic Cancer Diagnosis 16:19 How To Write A Parent's Obituary 19:34 How Money Was Talked About Growing Up 24:06 Becoming the Executor Of an Estate After a Parent Dies With No Instructions 27:33 Best Help And Worst Advice During Estate Settlement 32:56 Telling Her Dad He Wasn't Leaving The Hospital 41:19 Assets Left Out Of The Living Trust 45:51 The Ghost Car Titling Nightmare 51:36 Feeling Alone As A Young Executor 1:00:20 Questions She Wishes She'd Asked Her Parents 1:06:42 Grief Mantras And Advice For New Executors 1:07:54 Where To Find Becky's Book And Resources   Connect with Becky Robison: Visit My Parents Are Dead: What Now? website Follow My Parents Are Dead: What Now? on Instagram Get a copy of My Parents Are Dead: What Now? A Panic-Free Guide to the Practicalities of Death book Listen to the Bitching & Mourning podcast   Connect with Justin Weidenfeld: Connect with Justin on LinkedIn Follow The Currency of Grief on LinkedIn  Follow The Currency of Grief on Instagram  Follow The Currency of Grief on TikTok  Subscribe to The Currency of Grief on YouTube Visit Justin’s website bio Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm