Would You Rather? + 3 Questions
Live with the gorillas or live with the whales?
Thank you for being here.
Everybody can comment on today’s writing. I’d love to hear from you. x
One of my favourite games of all time.
A game that can be played anytime, with anyone, in any place.
A simple game that can flatten hierarchical structures for a few moments.
‘Would you rather only ever eat sweet foods for the rest of your life, or only savoury?’
‘Would you rather stay in the same country or be continually travelling?’
While working as a chef, I would enthusiastically introduce the game into every kitchen I worked in. No matter the hierarchy, everyone could play. Even if English was not a staff member’s first language, they played. Another colleague would translate for them, which somehow caused more hilarity once the question was understood.
As an actor, I’d play it backstage when working with The Royal Shakespeare Company and in between takes when working in TV, from the makeup artists to the directors to the catering staff, the producers, and the lighting crew.
People would randomly approach each other (especially during nighttime shoots, when we were all trying to stay awake) with very well-thought-out questions, with answers postponed for days in some cases.
“I just don’t know if I’d rather live underground or in the Arctic!! Give me time!!”
Travelling around Australia for 387 days, ‘Would you rather’ was a constant companion for my family. It seemed to have the ability to shorten the kilometres, break up squabbles, and lead to many creative conversations. I do have to say that playing it with an eleven and nine-year-old meant the questions could go to some very dark places.
“Would you rather have your eyes eaten out by a shark or a crocodile?”
A few years ago, I stumbled upon a card-deck version of the game, and it has some great questions.
‘Would you rather use a filthy public toilet, or use the world’s cleanest toilet, but there is a snake in there?’
‘Would you rather live in The Wizard of Oz or live in Harry Potter?’
These sorts of questions can be a great icebreaker. It is better than being asked, “What do you do?” or “What school did you go to?”
Fun is subjective, of that there is no doubt; and all fun can become its opposite, if we are unable to ‘read the room.’ But if you stick to questions that foster connection and are neither judgmental nor intrusive, this game can be a great way to learn about someone else, with very low stakes.
Played with creativity and curiosity, ‘Would you rather’ can also bring delight and moments of shared respite, where titles and rank are not as important as whether you like smooth or crunchy peanut butter.
Personally, I have been taught compassion through this game. It turns out I have some people in my life who actually like smooth peanut butter. People I would have judged harshly in the past, but I am learning to honour their life choices.
Guess what this month’s 3 questions are?
3 Questions:
1. Would you rather go into the past to meet your ancestors or into the future to meet your great-grandchildren? (from the official card game)
2. Would you rather never read a book again or only read the same book over and over again?
3. Would you rather never see a sunrise again or never see a sunset again?
Tell me in the comments, and of course, I am more than happy to answer any, ‘Would you rather?’ you send my way; it would be a delight to play with you!
I also invite you to ask one or all these questions to the people you find yourself with this weekend.
“Fun is good.” — Dr Seuss
Wishing you a weekend filled with delightful respite.
I love this game.
Q1. I would rather go back in time and meet my ancestors. I dabble a bit in genealogy and have some questions I’d like to ask to fill some gaps in my ancestry.
Q2. If this question means never read ANY book EVER AGAIN, I’d choose to read the same book over and over. If it means I can never re-read a book I’ve already read, I would choose that. I hardly ever re-read a book.
Q3. I would rather never see a sunset again. The sunrise for me means a new beginning, another opportunity. It means hope.
1. Ancestors, i’d like to meet my grandpa’s
2. same book twice but no idea which book haha
3. I’d choose to never see a sunrise, I feel like I see more sunsets than sunrises so seemed to make the most sense!
4. Negative 40 for me but grudgingly! cold makes my chronic pain flare but I loathe being sweaty haha
one for others:
Would you rather have the power to go inside the world of a book or be able to “tell the future” of a book and continue reading it after it has ended?