50 Questions Which Will Free Your Mind: Part 9

As part of “My 101 Things to do in 1001 Days” Challenge, I added the task to answer “50 questions which will free your mind.” These questions really make me stop to think. I encourage you to answer these questions.

You may remember that I started answering these questions a several months ago. I am answering five questions a month. I answered the first five on June 10, 2016, and the next five questions on July 8, 2016. On August 5, 2016, I answered questions 11-15. On September 2, 2016, I answered 16-20. Last month, on October 7, 2016, I answered 21-25. On November 3, 2016, I answered questions 26-30. On December 2, 2016, I answered questions 31-35. Last month, I answered questions 36-40.

Here are my answers to questions 41-45.

1. How old would you be if you didn’t know how old you are?
2. Which is worse, failing or never trying?
3. If life is so short, why do we do so many things we don’t like and like so many things we don’t do?
4. When it’s all said and done, will you have said more than you’ve done?
5. What is the one thing you’d most like to change about the world?
6. If happiness was the national currency, what kind of work would make you rich?
7. Are you doing what you believe in, or are you settling for what you are doing?
8. If the average human life span was 40 years, how would you live your life differently?
9. To what degree have you actually controlled the course your life has taken?
10. Are you more worried about doing things right, or doing the right things?
11. You’re having lunch with three people you respect and admire. They all start criticizing a close friend of yours, not knowing she is your friend. The criticism is distasteful and unjustified. What do you do?
12. If you could offer a newborn child only one piece of advice, what would it be?
13. Would you break the law to save a loved one?
14. Have you ever seen insanity where you later saw creativity?
15. What’s something you know you do differently than most people?
16. How come the things that make you happy don’t make everyone happy?
17. What one thing have you not done that you really want to do? What’s holding you back?
18. Are you holding onto something you need to let go of?
19. If you had to move to a state or country besides the one you currently live in, where would you move and why?
20. Do you push the elevator button more than once? Do you really believe it makes the elevator faster?
21. Would you rather be a worried genius or a joyful simpleton?
22. Why are you, you?
23. Have you been the kind of friend you want as a friend?
24. Which is worse, when a good friend moves away, or losing touch with a good friend who lives right near you?
25. What are you most grateful for?
26. Would you rather lose all of your old memories, or never be able to make new ones?
27. Is it possible to know the truth without challenging it first?
28. Has your greatest fear ever come true?
29. Do you remember that time 5 years ago when you were extremely upset? Does it really matter now?
30. What is your happiest childhood memory? What makes it so special?
31. At what time in your recent past have you felt most passionate and alive?
32. If not now, then when?
33. If you haven’t achieved it yet, what do you have to lose?
34. Have you ever been with someone, said nothing, and walked away feeling like you just had the best conversation ever?
35. Why do religions that support love cause so many wars?
36. Is it possible to know, without a doubt, what is good and what is evil?
37. If you just won a million dollars, would you quit your job?
38. Would you rather have less work to do, or more work you actually enjoy doing?
39. Do you feel like you’ve lived this day a hundred times before?
40. When was the last time you marched into the dark with only the soft glow of an idea you strongly believed in?
41. If you knew that everyone you know was going to die tomorrow, who would you visit today?
    I would visit with my parents and husband, just close family. They are the ones who I love the most and who have supported me. They are also the ones I would miss the most if I knew they were going to die the next day. I didn’t get to spend one last day with my grandparents (all four of them), because it was hard enough knowing that they were going to pass away. But with my parents or my husband, I would stop heaven and earth just to have more time with them.
42. Would you be willing to reduce your life expectancy by 10 years to become extremely attractive or famous?
    I don’t think so…  I want to live as long as I can, experience as much as I can… I want to see and meet and go and do… I can be ugly and unknown, and accomplish a lot in 10 years.
43. What is the difference between being alive and truly living?
    “Being alive”, to me, is the same as just merely existing. When ask how they’re doing, I’ve heard people respond, “I’m alive, thank God.” That’s great! I’m glad you’re alive, but being alive is not “truly living.” To me, “truly living” is waking up every day feeling alive, feeling a sense of urgency to accomplish as much as you can, feeling a sense of excitement about what the day holds. I don’t want to just “be alive”… I want to “truly live.”
44. When is it time to stop calculating risk and rewards, and just go ahead and do what you know is right?
    I’m a worrier and as my husband says, I over-analyze things. There are times when I don’t calculate risks and rewards and just jump in blindly, not knowing if what I’m doing is right. I think about Ben Stiller’s character, Reuben Feffer, in “Along Came Polly”, where he played a risk-assessor who fell in love with the wild-and-carefree Polly, played by Jennifer Aniston… he based his life on calculating risks and rewards. It’s good to think about the pros and cons of certain situations, but sometimes you’ve just got to take the bull by the horns and ride that bad boy. When you know something is right, when you know that the situation you’re contemplating is right, then stop over-thinking and just do it (head nod to Nike for the amazing slogan)!
45. If we learn from our mistakes, why are we always so afraid to make a mistake?
    Because we want to be “perfect”. Even though we learn from our mistakes, sometimes making a mistake can be embarrassing or it can cost us a lot. I think the fear of being embarrassed or being called out for making a mistake often holds us back. I also think the expectation to be “perfect” holds us back.
46. What would you do differently if you knew nobody would judge you?
47. When was the last time you noticed the sound of your own breathing?
48. What do you love? Have any of your recent actions openly expressed this love?
49. In 5 years from now, will you remember what you did yesterday? What about the day before that? Or the day before that?
    
50. Decisions are being made right now. The question is: Are you making them for yourself, or are you letting others make them for you?

Yours Truly,
Vanessa