It all started innocently enough.  A friend put up a video on Facebook that showed a man and a woman meeting for the first time to see if they were compatible and wanted to get married.  The man was an accountant – likeable, easygoing and funny.  The woman was a psychiatrist, rather stuck in her ways, seemingly comfortable about making the rules.  They agreed that they would take turns asking each other 20 questions to decide if they wanted to pursue a relationship.  Next thing you know, Nagib and I are watching the entire clip, because it’s Florida and we have time!

Over dinner at John’s Pass Village, sitting under the moon with a live band playing to the crowd, I suggested we play 20 questions and what started as a fun game became a surprising discovery about each other.  The only rule of the game:  We had to respond quickly, with our first answer.

The first few questions were  simple.  Favourite food?  Best vacation? The answers were predictable and comfortable.

Then the conversation became more serious.  What is your biggest wish for Shayne?  For Sabrina?  And we were aligned in our responses.

Most important goal over the next 3 months?  Surprisingly, we both had the exact same short-term priorities.

Biggest fear? This was a tough one for us to talk about.

Most embarrassing moment?

One thing we were most proud of?  That made for an interesting conversation and we landed on the same answer based on a shared experience.

Qualities we like – and do not like – about each other?

One thing we want to learn to do?  Quite a few surprises here.

What we want to be remembered for?  We came to this question from two very different places.

One person we admire the most?  Nagib had to do some deep thinking on this.  I started rattling lots of names until Nagib complained that I was not playing by the rules (which stated, one person).

One place we want to visit?  I could never have predicted Nagib’s response.

And so it continued until the last question of the night which was:  In this moment, Happiness Level, on a scale of 1 to 10?  We both said 10!  It’s hard not to be a 10 when I’m holding the sun and feeling one with the universe!  Florida makes us happy!

The questions – asked with curiosity and no judgement – were a great way to learn about each other all over again.  And after nearly 33 years of marriage, there were quite a few surprises. And that’s what makes relationships fun and interesting!