25 Not-Too-Scary Life Questions

Today I thought I would do something a little different and answer 25 Not-Too-Scary Life Questions from Karen Hume’s blog, Profound Journey.   Profound Journey is based in Canada, so those aren’t spelling errors in the questions, but rather the Queen’s English (which I am rather partial to, myself).

Even though these questions are “not-too-scary,” I’m not always comfortable plumbing the depth of who I am with the online public. I typically refrain from sharing much about myself with people unless I’ve gotten to know well. But, today I will share with you all since I know that you are nice people.

1. What is your favourite quote? Why?

“Samson killed a thousand men with the jaw bone of an ass. That many sales are killed every day with the same weapon.” Anonymous.

I first became a realtor at the age of 18. I worked under the brokerage of Coldwell Banker. The receptionist had this quote taped to the front desk of the Forest Lake office. I thought it was terribly clever and since then, it comes to my mind on a regular basis.

2. What is the best compliment you have ever received?

My husband commended me on the kind of wife I was, the day before he died. No words will ever mean more to me than those.

3. What is the title of the last book you read that you absolutely loved?

When We Were Vikings. I recently wrote a review for it which will be published closer to the books publication date in January 2020. I am fortunate to be able to review so many good books. I’m reading one right now that had me on the edge of my seat from the very first sentence.

4. What are you afraid of?

Failure. I fear looking foolish, being embarrassed, not succeeding, letting people down…all of these add up to being afraid of failure.

5. When do you have trouble saying ‘No’?

I don’t. I have actually gotten quite good at saying ‘no.’ The problem is that there are too many things that I want to say “yes” to. I’m interested in everything, so I often have to remind myself that downtime is precious.

6. What are you curious about?

I’m curious about everything. I love learning new things, so I’m always looking for new things to investigate, whether it’s a museum, a free class, or a local festival. The internet was made for people like me. There are so many free classes you can take online on just about anything! I never find anything boring.

7. What is your greatest source of joy?

Jesus.

8. What were your favourite activities when you were a child?

I had a worm farm. I read to my pets (not the worms). Biking around the neighborhood was another favorite pastime of mine. When I got older, horses, theater, and art, took up a lot of my time. I always wrote. Even before I could physically write, I was making up stories.

9. What is your most prized possession?

My husband’s and my wedding rings. I had his name engraved inside of mine, and he had mine engraved in his. We used to joke that at least if one of us got lost in our twilight years, we could be returned to our rightful person. Now, I wear his next to mine (inside so it doesn’t fall off, as it is slightly larger than mine).

10. What are you known for or would like to be known for?

I would love to be known for my writing.

11. Who or what are you grateful for?

There isn’t room here to list the people I am grateful for. There are many, many people whom I love and appreciate.

12. What would you like to stop doing?

Worrying about what other people think. Then, I could stop censoring myself in my writing, and I feel it would greatly improve.

13. What words and/or phrases do you use very frequently?

My daughter recently informed me that I use the word, “actually,” a lot. She’s right. I also use the words, “sometimes” and “often” and “may.” This is because there are often no hard and fast rules, so I like to allow for the exception when I am writing about something such as living with cancer.

14. What does being creative mean to you? Are you creative?

Creative means being original in your thought and implementing your ideas in a new and fresh way.

15. What steals your serenity?

Noise. I really like it quiet, and often carry earplugs for those times when the environment I’m in gets loud. It’s amazing how much background noise there is. We almost don’t notice it, but it does take a toll on us.

16. What kinds of people energize you and what kinds drain you?

My friend and sister-in-law, Marion, energizes me. No matter how I am feeling, we can always end up laughing together.  The kinds of people who drain me are ones who bring a lot of expectations with them. They need to have a greater awareness of what’s happening around them. Are they dominating the conversation? How long have we been talking? Etc.

17. When in your life have you felt at a dead end?

When my husband died. That’s not a pun. I have really had a difficult time seeing past that day. I do things, keep pushing forward, but it feels as though I am pushing against a brick wall. Every week feels worse than the week before. They gave me Effexor today. It’s supposed to help both my social anxiety and my depression. It will be interesting to see if it does. I sure hope so.

18. When do you feel amazing?

When I am recognized for my abilities and skills.

19. If you won a lottery, what would you do with the money?

I’d put the money into an interest-bearing account to live off of while getting my writing done. It would be amazing to be able to write for a living. I would give to the church and charitable organizations that I care about. I wouldn’t necessarily just give my kids a bunch of money since, at their ages, they should be driven to try to succeed on their own, but I would probably set up some trusts for them for later on when they have families.

20. When are you most yourself?

I’m most myself with my kids. They see my silliness, my bad moods, my insecurities. They also see my gifts and really encourage me in them. My kids believe in me (most of the time). They only thing they don’t see (often) are my tears. I usually try to keep those to myself.

21. What life detour have you taken that ultimately proved to be beneficial?

My divorce was a big detour. It was painful for everyone. I didn’t have a choice in the matter, and as a Christian, I was opposed to getting a divorce. But, it was ultimately good for me and my children. I met and married my husband, Dan, who then adopted the girls. As difficult as living with his cancer was, it was so much better than living with an abusive, adulterous, addict. My daughters got to see what a good marriage looks like.

22. What’s the best piece of advice you have ever been given?

After my divorce, a friend suggested that I write down everything I wanted in a husband and then give that list to God. She was saying that I needed to leave it up to Him to find the right person for me and in the meantime, just rest in Him. I did that. A couple of years later, I met Dan. He was everything I had written down.

23. If you could go to one conference or event, what would it be about?

Mycology and Wild Edibles. NAMA, the North American Mycological Association, has a big gathering every fall. Next year it’s in Missouri. I’m going to try to save up for it and go.

24. Finish these sentence starters:

I used to be a woman who….was unafraid.

I am now a woman who….censors herself.

I want to be a woman who….can just be myself.

25. Ask and answer your own question!

“What would you like your next trip to be?”

Dan and I always traveled. We were supposed to go on a cruise this fall for our 10^th anniversary. I would love to take a cruise to Alaska. That’s the ultimate vacation for me.  But really, anywhere would be nice. Dream, dream, dream…

What Are YOUR Thoughts?

I’d love to hear in the comment section, below. I appreciate my readers as well as the writing community. To show that appreciation, I use Comment Luv. Just leave a comment below and your latest post will get a link next to it. Thank you!

About Heather Erickson

I am an author, writer, and speaker and homeschooling mom of 3. Since doctors diagnosed my husband, Dan with stage IV lung cancer in 2012, I’ve focused my writing and speaking on helping cancer patients and their families advocate for themselves and live life to the fullest, in spite of their illness. My goal is to help people face cancer with grace. My books are available at Amazon.com:

The Memory Maker’s Journal 

Facing Cancer as a Friend: How to Support Someone Who Has Cancer

Facing Cancer as a Parent: Helping Your Children Cope with Your Cancer

I also blog about living with cancer at Facing Cancer with Grace.