Formal to Senior
Care · Conversation
これから先のこと、もしご希望がおありでしたら、ご家族にお伝えしておかれるのはいかがでしょうか。 — If you have any wishes for what lies ahead, would you consider sharing them with your family? (Care · Conversation, Formal to Senior, JLPT N1)
You
これから先のこと、もしご希望がおありでしたら、ご家族にお伝えしておかれるのはいかがでしょうか。
これからさきのこと、もしごきぼうがおありでしたら、ごかぞくにおつたえしておかれるのはいかがでしょうか。
If you have any wishes for what lies ahead, would you consider sharing them with your family?
Romaji: Korekara saki no koto, moshi gokibou ga oari deshitara, gokazoku ni otsutae shite okareru no wa ikaga deshou ka. / Reply Romaji: Sou desu ne... ichido, kangaete mimasu ne.
Reply
そうですね...一度、考えてみますね。
そうですね...いちど、かんがえてみますね。
Yes... let me think about it once.
Gesture & etiquette
Soft voice, long pauses between sentences. Sit at eye level, hands folded calmly. Allow the senior to look away or change topic — never push. If they go silent, sit quietly with them; do not fill the silence.
終活 (shuukatsu, end-of-life preparation) is increasingly common in Japan. The phrasing 'これから先のこと' (things from here on) and the soft suggestion 'いかがでしょうか' never directly say death — they let the senior open the door themselves. Topics include burial wishes, asset distribution, treatment preferences. Never initiate unless cleared with both family and the senior themselves.