Monday's Mindful Moments

Over the years, I've thought a lot about that forward that gets sent around in emails. The one that asks "If you could invite anyone, living or dead, to dinner, who would you invite?". I think this is an interesting question because so much of life's profound questions could be answered during that one night, and if allowed, my dinner would go on all night.

I would start off by inviting George Stroumboulopoulos because I think he is the best interviewer I've ever watched. Interviews with him are very conversational and without judgement or bias. I was going to invite Oprah, but lately she's become far too opinionated during interviews and she interjects and judges( it comes off kind of enduring, but I don't buy it). Then I thought of Barbara Walters, but she's kind of rigid and old school. So I'm choosing George as I think I'd be too overwhelmed to converse and ask questions, so he could get the ball rolling for me and if need be, keep it going.

I would then, invite Jesus because I want to hear HIS story, not the one written about him, plus he could tell me when he was really born - I doubt it was December 25th. Then I'd pick Gandhi because I adore him and want to learn from him, although he may be too quiet and with little to say, but whatever he had to say, I'm sure it would be profound. Then, while sipping my tea and sitting by the wood burning fire that would be all aglow and crackling, I'd like to observe and listen to the conversations between these three men: Henry David Thoreau, Ralph Waldo Emerson and Bronson Alcott (yes, Louisa May's father) as they were all friends and influential forward thinkers of their time; they were part of the Transcendalists group, but I don't want the whole group, just the three. I would like to ask these people what they all think of Christmastime in the 21st century. I believe they would all be aghast and appalled. I would want Vincent Van Gogh there because he was so tormented with life and art. Oh and, Charles Dickens, is he as dark as his books(which I confess, I've watched most on BBC dvd's)? Jane Austen, loved all her books(again BBC dvd's), what is she like? Lucy Maude Montgomery - love Anne - what's Lucy like? Susanna Moodie and Catharine Parr Traill because I'd like to know if their experience moving to and living in Canada's back woods were rough and painful because they very much were at that time or did they experience severe and hard times because they came from middle-class Britain. Lastly, my foremothers: my mother, my mother's mother and my mother's mother's mother, I want to hear their stories.

Well, I've invited too many people and I think, this so-called dinner may have to continue on into the next day and we'd all have brunch together. Thank you to all of my dinner guests, if only you all could make it!

A single conversation across the table with a wise person is worth a month's study of books.
~Chinese Proverbs~