What happens to your cyberspace footprint, after you die?

Ghost bike memorial
-we keep passing them,
on our way to hospital cancer treatments.

What happens? That's difficult to say! Facebook requires complex Power of Attorney and Certificate of Death evidence in order to delete.

My happy hubby has his catheter out. I've managed over 2000km into and out of the city for his cancer assessment, diagnostic tests, pre-op, post-op, visits into the city. The last trip into the city, through a snow storm, was the drive through hell, passing this friggan' memorials, I tell you.
Hubby is on the road to recovery. We await his pathology report for next steps. Hopefully, all will be clear, but they cannot know for sure until they examine all the sectioned cells. Radiation might be next. We live in the present.

With my ex-husband's passing, from a sudden heart attack this week, this topic [Forbes article: What Happens to Your Data When you Are Dead?] is something I think about. His 2nd wife has dementia, and the kids are currently fretting over a placement for her, as she is unsafe living alone. Yep. Quite a week it has been.

I've had many blog buddies whose blogs have simply been left out there in cyberspace. One young man, age 24, was posting about his disease trajectory. He had stomach cancer. One of his close friends finally emailed me after he passed, as I had heard nothing and did not know of his passing. His posts simply stopped.

Being a hospice volunteer, I've thought about this issue, and still do not know what to tell my children. I've told them where I keep my passwords. I am a firm believer that we celebrate the day of birth, and life, not the day of death. I loather those ghost bike memorials on city streets. This isn't where one should remember someone, I don't think.

road-side memorial

On my blogs I've chronicled my journey through my career teaching, and shared some lessons learned (i.e., Tips for Parents with Children on the Internet). There is much being written about protecting our children. A new issue: protecting seniors from those who would prey on them on-line is another dilemma.

I've continued my personal research on senior healthcare, current information and best practices for those needing healthcare in Ontario (The for-profit healthcare sector is huge!), but eventually, this information will be outdated. What happens when I can no longer maintain it?

This memorial to Jacques Leblanc,
we also pass on the way to hospital.
It is creepy, as you contemplate your life.
He died here, age 22, on his motorcycle.

There are some good pieces I've written, which are timeless. Photos, however, are a nice record of a family. Our grandparents might have kept photos in photo albums, and data in ledgers, like Nancy's family, who settled in Lake of Bays in 1905:  Grandfather's Beach.

A friend of mine documented her journey caring for her husband  (WWII veteran) with Alzheimer's Disease: from managing his symptoms, to finally finding him a long-term care, and then the day he and his new girlfriend ran away! She had much support and encouragement. Once he passed over, she created a new blog about her recovery from grief, mourning and bereavement, as a widow. She is doing so well. Many, like Olga, shave shared their grief over losing a husband, and received much support. She wrote about cooking for one.

I also do blogs for two Habitat for Humanity groups. These photos are timeless and a part of the history.

My late father, late mother, and our family 1991
Ironically, my ex-husband's funeral is at this church.
He and his 2nd wife lived in the area.

The Bala Habitat build was amazing, I took photos on a regular basis. We moved away just before it was finished, but they sent photos!

In case of emergency, check browser history!
What do you think?