36 Questions

I got my friends to go through the 36 Questions That Lead to Love last night as a game / structured conversation / do these work if we’re already in love with each other? I hadn’t read them before but a book I read had recently mentioned them as a way to connect more deeply in our platonic and romantic relationships.

So after a dinner of Dominios and ready to go with 19 Crimes Cabernet Savinugon, we gathered on the folded-out futon and ploughed through the list. Much we knew about each other already but I was surprised, after a couple of check-ins to see if they wanted to keep going, that we were all into the exercise. It turned out to be a good way to check in on who we are today, get nostalgic, and get real with each other.

One of the questions asks you to list things you like about your partner. So in our trio, we took turns and did impromptu (actually pretty emotional) soliloquies to what we admire about each other. It was a beautiful moment of intimacy and validation.

We made up our own final question because we didn’t like the last one (it didn’t really apply to us and our current level of knowing each other) and didn’t want to end on penultimate: “Of all the people in your family, whose death would you find most disturbing?” (morbid much?)

My friend Cara’s revised final question was appropriate for us: “What is your Patronus?”

Now that’s knowing someone. And I think it’s hard not to love someone when you know them so completely. It’s a lot to be grateful for.

With Love,

Natalie