What's on Your Mind?

From our very first “Why?” we indulge our curiosity by asking questions.  Some answers we want to know – When will I be old enough?  Some we need to know – Is there a monster under the bed?  We learn how to coyly or cutely answer How old are you? and that answers can change to What do you want to be when you grow up? We learn there are consequences to our answers when asked Who is responsible? or How did this happen?

Our rebellious years can have us returning to ‘why’ by adding a ‘should I?’ and we include a Who says?  We learn to politely ask May I join you? and not to ask How much do you make? We search for How many calories? and plot our own answers to What comes next?

As we age we learn there are often follow up questions.  Can I afford it? comes after How much does it cost? or perhaps we add a ‘Is it negotiable?’  We also learn that there are questions no one expects us to really answer, like How are you?, that there are questions where the answers are unknown, such as  Why did this happen?, and that we are desperate to know the answers to Will you marry me? and How long do I have?

If you spent five minutes to list all of the usual questions, real and rhetorical, that you ask and answer in any month I’ll bet you could fill a page.  But here’s a challenge.  It came to mind because the primaries are over but November looms.  If you could stand before Congress and ask one question, what would it be? Before asking this of you, I gave it some consideration.  I started with a sarcastic What are you thinking?, went to a shaming Does your mother know what you’re up to? and then to an angry What will it take to get you all to work together? It took a long time actually, but I came up with my question.  I’ll post it after my signature in case you want to do this exercise on your own first.

I know, I know.  Do we really want to know the answers?  Would they tell the truth? What would we do with the answers? (Yes, I thought about telling them it’s a secret and then publishing them, but realized I really simply want to know the answer).  I am sad that this little icebreaker is something that can never happen. It would tell me more than any debate and inform me as to the character of those who govern.

Marilyn

I would ask each of our elected officials, What is one thing you are willing to give up in order to make the difference that you once thought you could make?