In last week’s island-themed dilemma, y’all were asked whether you’d prefer to hang out with the cast of Gilligan’s Island on their island or with the cast of Lost on the island where their plane had crashed. Twice as many of you chose to go with Gilligan’s and his peeps as did those of you who opted to go to the island where Jack and Sawyer were spending their time.
The skew towards Gilligan’s Island seemed to be primarily based on having seen the series and not having seen Lost. Also, the crew on Lost were deemed “angsty” and the island “creepy”, while the Professor apparently still held the interest of several of you even after all these years.
So, which island did I send myself to? While I grew up with Gilligan’s Island and had many a laugh over their antics, I have to go with the island and the crew of Lost. First, even though the island is supposedly in the south Pacific, the show was actually filmed in Hawaii and having just returned from there, I wouldn’t mind some more Hawaiian time in my life. Second, Jack. Third, Sawyer. I’m willing to overlook the creepy “Others” and the Dharma Initiative. Because Hawaii. And Jack. And Sawyer.
And now, on to this week’s question, brought to you by the friendly ladies in my office at work with whom I consulted…
*Spoiler alert: this week’s question is a bit on the heavy side*
Would you rather
know when the world might end
– OR –
how the world might end?
***
Which will you choose, thoughtful readers? Do you want to know what date in the (hopefully far, far) distant future the world might end? Or will you choose to know what might be the eventual cause of earth’s demise? The pillows are fluffed and the tea is steeped. Sit, sip, and share. I always love to hear from you.
on ,
Gloria Richard said:
Yeah. Okay. Thanks for the *heavy* spoiler alert.
[Would it be rude to suggest you take your co-workers out for happy hour before you solicit their help with another question? Yes? OK. Never mind…]
After careful consideration, I choose to go with knowing how the world will end, rather than when. Like death, I’ll know it’s inevitable and (unlike death) I’ll know the circumstances. However, not knowing when sets me free to live my life with my head where my feet are. In the now. Today. What glee can I garner today? What good can I do today? What Bliss List accomplishments can I add to today?
Conversely, if I chose when, (with no advance knowledge of whether that choice would yield a day, a week, a year, or a millennium), it would be like having a project deadline that’s too short (ACK! I can’t get it done, so why try?) or so far away it would not give me a make-every-minute-count booster shot (Eh! I’ve got a millennium and five more lives to get ‘er done.)
Yes. Final answer.
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Tami Clayton said:
[Your suggestion is not rude, Gloria. In fact, they are completely on board with going out for Happy Hour. Makes me wonder if that was their ploy all along…]
What I like best about your answer is that you so astutely point out that knowing how allows us to keep our focus on the present, making the best life we can here and now. Well said. It’s given me pause to think about this question a little differently.
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marcia said:
I’m going with knowing when the world might end rather than how, since I would have so many things to do, places to go, people to connect with and enjoy, etc, etc…..assuming the end was near.
on ,
Tami Clayton said:
You also make a good point, Marcia. Knowing when gives you a chance to prioritize the important things in life, namely connecting with those we cherish while we still have time.
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Elizabeth Fais said:
I had to think about this one, but I finally decided I would rather know “when” than “how” the world would end. The reason? Well, if I knew for certain the end of the world wouldn’t happen for another thousand years, I just wouldn’t worry about it. On the other hand, if I knew the world would end next year, I would reassess priorities and do those things I’ve always wanted to do but couldn’t rationalize doing them because of money, time, or whatever. It’s funny how our view of “what’s important” changes if we know we only have a short time to live. Might be a good thing to move some of those “would like to do some day” things up the priority list, after thinking about his question.
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Tami Clayton said:
So true. Determining what’s most important takes on a different meaning when there’s a time limit involved. And like you, I’m thinking more about those things-I’d-like-to-do-but-haven’t with a little more urgency. No time like the present, right? 😉
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Suzanne Stengl said:
Yes, like Gloria said, definitely take those co-workers out for Happy Hour!
I would choose How. Since I’m optimistic, I don’t think the end will be caused by the humans living here. I’m going to assume that I already know HOW. The end will happen because the sun burns out.
And I’m going to assume we will have all moved to one of the moons in the Dagobah System by then.
on ,
Tami Clayton said:
As it turns out, one of my co-workers who helped formulate this week’s question had your exact answer. And she loved your assumption about moving to the Dagobah System, too! Let’s hope you are right. 🙂
on ,
Coleen Patrick said:
I’d say when. I’m assuming that if we learned how, then we wouldn’t know when, and that would leave me in a state of anxiety wondering when that sharknado would eventually touchdown. 🙂
on ,
Tami Clayton said:
You’re right, knowing how doesn’t mean we’ll know when. But the opposite is also true. Knowing when doesn’t mean the sharknado will happen. It could be something equally as absurd and frightening, like a massive swirling dervish of chickens with razor sharp beaks and deadly claws. *shudders*