This morning, an anonymous poster on Quora, the social media site I haven’t visited since I discovered a year ago that I don’t understand how to use it, asked me this:
What has been the most beautiful experience of your life? What place, time, person, relationship, or experience, is branded in your mind forever?
- a naked sleeping baby that looks like you stole an Anne Geddes shot
Yeah, both my newborns had colic so they cried upwards of 10 hours a day for three months. Also, if you let a newborn sleep buck naked, you will have a big mess to clean up within 20 minutes.
- a bride and groom
Thanks for reminding me of my divorce. Would you like to add a shot of a bald woman getting chemo to round it out for me? Perhaps my oil heating bill, too?
- a painting of woman in a meadow holding an inside-out umbrella in one hand and a wine glass in the other
Yes, it has been that kind of winter indeed. But where’s her broken snow shovel? Mine’s in the garage by the snowblower, which is T-I-R-E-D.
- several large dolphins jumping in the waves near a surfer
They are headed straight for the surfer. This isn’t going to end happy.
- people holding a light inside a bell-looking thing under what has to be a planetarium because the stars don’t naturally look like that
A cult? I’m not sure what’s happening there, but I am not giving them any money.
- inexplicably, a hipster-looking dude being hugged by a tiger.
Presumably before the tiger ate him.
That said, I will answer your question despite the distractions:
What has been the most beautiful experience of your life?
The moment my oncologist called and said, “You’re in remission.” Because that meant I’d have more time to go find a tiger to hug me, of course.
Photo: iStockphoto/skinnymac