ETHICAL WILLS DEFINE VALUES, BLESSINGS.(LIFE & LEISURE)

Byline: KAY HARVEY Knight Ridder

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Pregnant with her first child, Elaine Ellis Stone pondered the lessons she wanted to teach. She wrote them down in a deliberate way -- in an ethical will.

Unlike a will that doles out material possessions, an ethical will defines values, beliefs, opinions, life lessons, dreams and blessings an individual wants to pass along to loved ones.

``What attracted me to an ethical will is it's about what's really important,'' says Stone, now mom to 2-month-old daughter Rachael. ``It's passing on values you hope the next generation will follow.''

A tradition in some cultures that was largely lost …