Dear Heloise: I don’t want to sound morbid, but you never know what will happen on a trip. Whenever my husband and I go on a trip, I take a picture of our tickets, passports, and any other important documents on my phone, then send them to my son before we leave. I let him have a copy of our plans in foreign countries and our hotel information, and I stay in contact by sending postcards to friends and family.

Why all the precaution? A dear friend of ours was in an accident years ago and could not communicate important information to anyone. He was in a coma for two weeks and missed his return flight home, which made his family frantic. His wife didn’t know where he was staying and only had old photos of him.

Thank God he was returned to his family, but if he had died, no one might have known what had happened to him. — Georgia N., in Charleston, South Carolina

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LESSON LEARNED

Dear Heloise: Seven years ago, I nearly lost my son. His father took him boating out on the ocean, but before they left, I reminded him that our son was only 7 years old. So, his father should make certain that he had a life vest on. He put a life vest on our son, but he didn’t close it. While zipping around in his boat, our son flipped out of the boat and out of the life vest because his father didn’t close the vest properly.

If you have a child, always make certain that the vest is closed and securely on the child. I thank the heavens that I taught him to swim when he was 5 years old. He started swimming toward shore, but a couple who saw what had happened raced to rescue him in their boat.

I don’t expect a 7-year-old to have the sense of danger that an adult would have, but his father knew better. So, thank you for reminding people to teach their children to swim. It helped save my son’s life until he could be rescued. — Ava E., in Hollywood, Florida

REMEMBER THE GOOD TIMES

Dear Heloise: I recommend that young couples establish the practice of taking a picture of themselves in front of every place they live at throughout the years, whether it’s a house or an apartment. I also recommend doing this in front of every car they’ve ever owned. It’s surprising how we forget these parts of our personal histories. — J. Keith C., in Omaha, Nebraska

J., it’s always fun to look back and see what we looked like and that we were better-looking than we realized back then. It’s also fun to see where we lived and how the streets have changed, and maybe it’ll spark up some very happy memories. — Heloise

A SOLUTION TO DROOLING

Dear Heloise: I’ve been reading your column for years and never saw this one. I have a full face mask with my CPAP machine. I drool a lot, and the buildup of drool wakes me up several times during the night. My respiratory therapist said to keep a stack of clean washcloths next to my bed to wipe the drool, but this doesn’t solve the problem of being woken up by it.

My solution has been sanitary pads! I use the smallest ones and only tear off half of the strip that protects the adhesive coating. I adhere it inside the mask and remove it every morning. It works perfectly! When I clean my machine every week, I haven’t ever found an adhesive buildup. — Sue L., in Santa Maria, California

Sue, it’s crazy how we so often discover solutions to a problem and wonder why no one else thought of it before now. — Heloise