THE FOUR EMOTIONS

My grandmother said I was curious when I was younger. Asking questions that seem silly but pose a philosophical viewpoint such as why are there ants? What is their purpose for being here? I do not really remember asking these, but I do find time now to take my grandma out to lunch or a coffee — usually a hip spot in the city that is nice to share with her, to learn and gain wisdom of life.

Throughout my journey so far at 33 years young, I keep gravitating toward more philosophical ideas and conversations. It can be daunting to remember how insignificant we are to the grand scheme of things in life. Like looking out at the ocean on a beach realizing how small we truly are. However, I have also found the most out of life from being curious and discussing with others the “real stuff” that matters. It has been increasingly difficult to make small talk. Maybe I do a lot of it in my day-to-day as someone who works in sales, but I try not to lean into it and would rather get to know the true person I am speaking with. Some would say I think too much. A work in progress I suppose just like everyone else…

Alan Watts, a brilliant philosopher who has gained such notoriety in the motivational and inspirational videos you see on YouTube, has a good speech on “Stop Overthinking”. This blurb from the speech resonated with me, and I try to apply it every day:

“A person who thinks all the time has nothing to think about except thoughts. So, he loses touch with reality, and lives in a world of illusions. By thoughts, I mean specifically, chatter in the skull. Perpetual and compulsive repetition of words, of reckoning and calculating. I’m not saying that thinking is bad. Like everything else, it’s useful in moderation. A good servant but a bad monster. And all so-called civilized peoples have increasingly become crazy and self-destructive because, through excessive thinking, they have lost touch with reality. That’s to say, we confuse signs, words, numbers, symbols, and ideas with the real world.”

Admittedly, I do introspectively think a lot and try to empathize with others from an emotional perspective, which is the basis of this article. To understand why I chose to write this and how I came to think about the 4 emotions — I want to delve into this journey.

One word that I came across back in high school was Sonder. A word that isn’t a word but written by author John Koenig in The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows. Sonder means:

“the realization that each random passerby is living a life as vivid and complex as your own — populated with their own ambitions, friends, routines, worries and inherited craziness — an epic story that continues invisibly around you like an anthill sprawling deep underground, with elaborate passageways to thousands of other lives that you’ll never know existed, in which you might appear only once, as an extra sipping coffee in the background, as a blur of traffic passing on the highway, as a lighted window at dusk.”

This struck a chord in the desire to think more about that. The continued urge to learn and understand why we act the way we do brought me to the desire to be in psychology. I went to Buffalo State College as an undergraduate ready to pursue this major but soon found out marketing has a bit more relevancy for me and still utilizes the why’s and how’s of choice. Even as I have gotten older, I pose these wildly grandiose questions to myself. Whether it be driving in the car with no music or listening to a song that has been slowed + reverbed that brings out some melancholy, I think inward and outward.

— — — — — — — — -

A good friend and mentor of mine, Anthony Gomez, showed me the Daily Stoic many years ago when I got into traveling. It was the perfect symbiotic moment for me.

Traveling was always something that interested me — to explore, meet people, experience new cultures, and find out what it is like in other places. I love a good relaxing trip, but my favorite travels are backpacking or wandering and exploring.

Stoicism was the other piece here. I found such a deep connection to this outlook on life from Ryan Holiday, author of The Daily Stoic, Ego is the Enemy, and many other incredible pieces to bring about this philosophy to people’s lives. Using the knowledge and principles of life that ancient Greek philosophers Marcus Aurelius, Epictetus, and Seneca applied to themselves is a work of improvement and constant overcoming of obstacles — a main theme of Stoicism.

In addition to Anthony, I need to call out some others with whom I have close connections and with whom I speak regularly on this topic — Nick Simonette, Andi Wetter, Phil Schlitz, Rita Vinnik, my sisters Trina & Kelly, Adrienne Gomez and the rest of the Gomez family — they have also amplified this way of thinking and applied philosophy. It’s the belief and understanding that emotions play a crucial role in our decisions, but it is also just as important to apply Stoicism and not rely on emotions throughout all aspects of life.

— — — — — — — — -

This brings me to my work in experiential marketing. This style of marketing brings an emotional engagement to a customer/audience through multi-sensory interactions and storytelling narratives. The soul of experiential marketing is human connection. It is over the course of being a brand ambassador, tour manager, business developer, and overall, an experiential enthusiast that I found how impactful these brand moments and experiences are to creating emotions within us. Each person I have encountered within my career has shared a memory of theirs or mentioned how they felt going through an event like Art Basel, SXSW, Cannes Lions. Even more so, the experiences from the likes of brands like Spotify, Microsoft, and TikTok all deeply understand how people come to embrace loyalty and recognition from an emotional connection. Apple is a perfect example, the sheer amount of time, energy, and money that gets invested into the store design, product experience, and emotional journey of customers is why they are a force to be reckoned with across the globe.

In May of this year, I found myself in Las Vegas for the Experiential Summit, a culmination of the best marketing firms and biggest brands coming together for all things experiential marketing. I was attending a session that provided the biggest lesson for me. And that was storytelling.

The art of storytelling is deeply rooted in evoking emotions, articulating experiences, and memories through words, and allowing for one person to connect with another. The 3 main elements were:

1. Arc
2. Stakes
3. Theme

One of the best examples of using the 3 elements is the story of Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit. The Arc is his journey, starting from the Shire to explore and understand, along with all the people he met. The Stakes are what we as an audience are invested in. Will Bilbo get the fortune with the Dwarves? Will the One Ring be brought back to Sauron? Does Bilbo go back home? The Theme of the whole story is Heroism. You catch glimpses of it throughout the story when a regular person develops into someone who impacts so many.

Another example is Harry Potter. What inspired so many people in my generation when I was younger to read more is that J.K. Rowling put these elements into place for an emotional experience. The Arc was Harry learning he is a wizard, going to Hogwarts, and coming to terms with growing older in his world of good vs. evil. The Stakes were Voldemort coming back and taking over the Wizarding World. And the Theme has been shared by the author herself to be Death.

While it would seem pretty evident and easy to understand, it’s important to realize these elements have given us the ability to learn, connect, reiterate, and share stories from generations before to generations to come by reading, writing, listening, and talking.

— — — — — — — — -

My childhood wonder, globetrotting wanderlust, career journey, the learnings /applications of Stoicism, and the art of storytelling has brought me to identify 4 emotions that shape people’s lives and choices. Emotions generally are the driving force behind our decisions, regrets, abilities, failures, and actions. Our world heavily revolves around them, and our minds continuously experience them one at a time or even multiple simultaneously. Below I’ll share more about these 4 emotions and explain what each does to us similarly and differently across the globe.

— — — — — — — — -

1. Nostalgia

a sentimental longing or wistful affection for the past, typically for a period or place with happy personal associations

One of the most powerful emotions that grows stronger as we age. Look at Mattel’s Barbie, a phenomenon of marketing that is bringing the love for the plastic doll back into people’s lives. Every PR firm and every brand partnership you have seen is capitalizing on the momentum of the Barbie film because they understand how much of an emotional response it is to see this childhood toy come to life. Another example that I go back and watch from time to time is the scene from AMC Mad Men when Don Draper uses the Kodak Carousel projector to showcase the emotion of nostalgia, creating a sense of connection and longing. After the presentation to the client, one of the other characters at the advertising firm says to the client “Good luck at your next meeting”. Such a response evokes confidence and reassurance that the emotional response will last long after they leave the meeting to go to the next pitch.

Although we live in different places and don’t see each other often, a good friend from high school, James, has always been someone I have had deep and thought-provoking discussions. We both have had our tribulations in life but always take the time to understand one another. Countless times we have talked about how getting older is hard and we find ourselves saying “Do you remember when” or “That time we all…”. It is a form of nostalgia, to long for a time we were once in. I think it’s why people rewatch Friends or The Office so much, it provides a level of comfort and emotional security from a time ago. It is important to recognize that Nostalgia is a common emotion. Every generation, our grandparents, and the next generation of kids will always experience it. It can be increasingly difficult to differentiate the fun and relationship building of a time that has passed from the onslaught of depression that comes with trying to recapture those moments/memories. A good example is Dom Cobb from Inception. The dream world is the prime place for nostalgia — Leonardo Decaprio captures this perfectly in his acting and is well established from Christopher Nolan’s direction/storytelling. Dom finds time and time again throughout the movie he can’t move on from his memory of his recently passed wife. A strong message.

I would be remiss if I didn’t explore my own nostalgia that I face time and time again. I have a history of being known as the one who has photos and videos of all the different memories and experiences. I can be quite specific on a day/night out or a restaurant I have been to, a digital timestamp if you will. To have this digital library is a beautiful thing, to be able to record and store these moments forever is an incredible way of keeping memories alive and bringing them back to life from time to time.

Simon Sinek, the author and motivational speaker, has put an emphasis on what social media is doing to us. In a viral interview on YouTube, Simon mentioned the constant need to compare is truly ruining our mental health and expectations of people. It also is a driving force of the emotional weight of nostalgia. We have become wrapped up in the idea of posting a video or photo or status update of something we attended or listened to more than the actual event itself — only to look back at it with the emotional weight of it being a moment passed.

The comedian Louis C.K. had a segment on social media. One of the best comedians and in some way philosophers to come out of that form of entertainment since George Carlin. Louie was on Conan one night talking about taking cell phones away from his daughters even though all of their classmates had one. He said how bad he thought cell phones are, that they provide a constant rush of dopamine that can be easily tied to nostalgia along with other emotions. Louie indicated how he countered the urge to look at his phone while driving since he was getting that existential feeling we get deep in our stomachs. He pulled over and just wept. Allowing himself to feel what was coming on and letting him experience the profound emotion of sadness and the natural part of switching to happiness.

Three of my favorite quotes that capture Nostalgia and provide clarity to recognize it when we see it:

“If you are depressed you are living in the past. If you are anxious you are living in the future. If you are at peace you are living in the present.” — Lao Tzu

“Be careful whose advice you buy, but be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia. Dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it’s worth.” — Baz Luhrmann from Always Wear Sunscreen

“I wish there was a way to know you’re in the good old days before you’ve actually left them.” — Ed Helms character Andy Bernard from The Office

— — — — — — — — -

1. Love

an intense feeling of deep affection

a great interest and pleasure in something

a person or thing that one loves

An easy one to understand but hard to explain. We use the emotional effects of Love in many ways throughout the experiential marketing world. How does one create love or a sense of love for a brand? Most of the time it is an activity or interaction using one of our 5 senses. Did someone love going through that pop-up in NYC or London? Did they love what they heard at a corporate event you attended? All valid questions that marketing professionals try to answer before they even start on a campaign or development of an event.

This emotion transcends all cultures. Traveling has taught me this. We all want to feel accepted and loved. When traversing through Japan, I faced the hardest language barrier I’ve ever experienced, and yet, it is a country I absolutely love and want to return to. Why? The people I encountered in Tokyo, the lifestyle in Kyoto, and the food in Osaka — all allowed me to have a deeper understanding of the culture. The same goes for when I was in Brazil. People back home were telling me to be cautious and expressed uncertainty about visiting Rio de Janeiro. I ended up falling in love with the culture, atmosphere of the city and overall the entire country. I was there for my birthday this year and remember catching up with my sisters through phone calls. They asked how Brazil was treating me, and I remember specifically saying if I have learned anything from traveling, it is that we are all trying to do the same thing across the globe for the most part. The emotion of love is shown in providing for our families, connecting with friends, sharing a drink or food, or finding yourself immersed in a musical or live performance.

I follow a gentleman who shares videos and short clips on different forms of media that goes by Sprouht. His main theme is to live your best life — it requires you to have a strong sense of knowing who you are and what you want. You can only have these strong senses by growing your MINDSET. He interviews many people who have a lot to pass down in the form of love. Common questions he will ask are “What’s your biggest regret, what advice would you share to your younger self, is there something we prioritize too much when we are younger but realize it wasn’t as important as we get older?” The answers are astonishing! Many who are in their 60’s, 70’s, and 80’s will say we don’t love enough or take time to find that passionate thing you love in your life, and even explain that we should learn to love ourselves more as a form of being authentic. A good friend of mine, Willis, who has one of the most free-spirited mindsets, shared with me that he is unapologetically himself. His giving and loving attitude is contagious. He truly tries to spread that love to everyone around him.

The movie 500 Days of Summer has been a go-to for me when it comes to this emotion. The emotional journey of Joseph Gordon Levitt’s character of his unrequited love with Zooey Deschanel’s character is so relatable and investing. We see him experience nostalgia through the non-linear style of storytelling of his relationship with her, all the moments that were “good” along with all the moments that were “bad”. The scene that showcases how Love affects someone differently, is the scene when he is visiting Zooey’s character after a time apart from one another. She is hosting a party and the viewer gets two clips with the words “Expectations” and “Reality” under them. Each is played out differently. The expectations clip shows the idea that the night will go as he planned it in his head and they will fall madly back in love with conversation, sunset backdrop, and eventually embrace each other. The reality clip shows them not talking as much and realizing she has become engaged to someone else. A sobering moment for the character and the viewer.

Love is easily one of the most beautiful emotions someone can feel. It is both a privilege and a gift to be loved and to love. My mother and father provided nothing but love and the ultimate best for my sisters and me growing up, and they continue to do so to this day. My mother makes photo albums of my international travels to create a tangible item that will be a relic of love and experiences. An anonymous quote that puts love into an ever translatable and cross-cultural perspective:

“The truth is that airports have seen more sincere kisses than the wedding halls, and the walls of hospitals have heard more prayers than the walls of a church.”

— — — — — — — —

1. Fear

an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or a threat

No matter who you are, we go through this one in every chapter of our lives. This emotion can be seen as negative, but in reality, it helps bring us through difficult times or thoughts.

I think it would be easy to argue that we all at one point in our lives will or have feared death. Like the theme in Harry Potter, it is something to come to terms with. Following Stoic philosophy as I do, one of the tattoos on my forearms says, “Memento Mori” or “Remember, you must die”. I have had some people say wow that is morbid, however, it is a reminder that it will happen to all of us. I think people should do the same and realize that time we are experiencing is fleeting and death is absolute. Dwelling on it does no good, but lack of acknowledgment is even worse. That is why Fear is so strong in emotion. Not letting it take control of us but being cognizant that it exists.

As an emotion that overtakes every fiber of your decision making, it is by far the most impactful. To some degree, it is why we will never hear or see some of the talents that rest inside individuals out in the world. The fear of trying, starting, persevering, and overcoming is interwoven into the minds of many. I once heard an interview done by the late night host Craig Ferguson who had the beautiful actress. Alice Eve, on as a guest. They were discussing getting a tattoo and some philosophical dilemmas behind free will. One thing that stood out to me was this quote Alice had said to Craig:

“Rarely do you regret an action; it is inaction you regret.”

Subtle, but profound enough to showcase the level of fear is a mechanism in the mind to not go forward with a decision. Of course, rational thinking is critical and based on calculations of our own thinking, however, it can be imperative to growing and accepting change. Master of None on Netflix, written, directed, and acted by Aziz Ansari has a scene on the fear of taking action. In the final episode of the first season, Aziz’s character Dev can’t make a choice on whether he wants to stay with his girlfriend and start a family because “that is what you’re supposed to do” or pursue other girls or decide to quit his job and travel the world. Dev eventually obtains the book from his dad called The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath, and inside it is the quote that strongly defines and characterizes the emotion of Fear:

“I saw my life branching out before me like the green fig tree in the story. From the tip of every branch, like a fat purple fig, a wonderful future beckoned and winked. One fig was a husband and a happy home and children, and another fig was a famous poet and another fig was a brilliant professor, and another fig was Ee Gee, the amazing editor, and another fig was Europe and Africa and South America, and another fig was Constantin and Socrates and Attila and a pack of other lovers with queer names and offbeat professions, and another fig was an Olympic lady crew champion, and beyond and above these figs were many more figs I couldn’t quite make out. I saw myself sitting in the crotch of this fig tree, starving to death, just because I couldn’t make up my mind which of the figs I would choose. I wanted each and every one of them, but choosing one meant losing all the rest, and, as I sat there, unable to decide, the figs began to wrinkle and go black, and, one by one, they plopped to the ground at my feet.”

The experiences in my industry of experiential are sometimes called “brand activations”. Many times, an immersive space like the Museum of Ice Cream or Meow Wolf has various brand activations throughout to engage the 5 senses and bring about an emotional response. One immersive space called 29Rooms in Brooklyn had a brand activation that encapsulated Fear quite well. You enter a room with desks and each one has 2 chairs facing one another. The attendees would sit wherever they’d like, always 2 people at a desk. Complete strangers, sitting across from one another, in a room filled with others all thinking the same. The workers or “cast” would come around and place a deck of cards on the table. They asked for everyone to stare into the person’s eyes across from them for 60 seconds. No words or looking away, lots of smirks and half smiles were obviously taking place. After 60 seconds, it was time to take a card from the deck and ask the person across from you the question on the card. Let’s look at 10 of those questions:

1. Who or what do you think you were in a past life?
2. What color is your soul?
3. What is your greatest fear?
4. How would you like to be remembered?
5. When do you feel the most present?
6. What was the last thing that brought you to tears?
7. Tell me about your happy place.
8. What is your favorite thing about yourself?
9. Who do you miss?
10. How do you care for yourself when life feels overwhelming?

Can you imagine sitting across from someone you never met, and after staring at them for 60 seconds — asking these types of questions? And vice versa, being asked these questions with the intent to respond, causes all sorts of fear in your own head of the answers you will share.

Truthfully and transparently, the answers came simply since all the tension was broken. The emotion of fear was cast aside as you already felt vulnerable staring into each other. While sometimes difficult to articulate or express right away, that feeling of fear driving you away can’t stick. We feel this when you go up to someone and ask them out on a date. Your mind inherently tells you don’t do this! Kind of crazy. And just like the Stoics, the Obstacle is the Way. Push through those thoughts and doubts. On the other side of that is the next emotion.

— — — — — — — — -

1. Hope

The feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen.

The trickiest of them all. This emotion ties into fear. The Yin to its Yang. One can come before or after the other. Hope is crucial to a storytelling narrative no matter the experience. I mentioned how Fear can drive away a decision or have us later regret inaction. Hope is one of the driving forces of “What If…”

What if it works out?

What if he/she says yes?

What if this job or career choice is the right thing for me?

What if I start working out consistently and developing better habits?

Unfortunately, and fortunately, I have had to face the ever so intrusive imposter syndrome. Imposter syndrome is the internal experience of self-doubt and believing you are not as competent as others perceive you to be. Some have it worse than others or better yet fail to wear it on their sleeve as evidently as others. The one thing that has helped me push through these thoughts is the wonderful people around me. Another thing is realizing that Hope is an emotion that allows me to see it as just an obstacle, a hurdle, a detour — but something I can go through or get around, no matter what.

Don’t confuse Hope with grand delusion. Being hopeful that something will happen can be a slippery slope. We all experience that but need to make sure we understand the difference. Hope is the emotional response of becoming the best version of yourself, and in doing so requires action on your own part or with the assistance of others’ input.

Hope has a strong correlation with people that face another emotion — Depression. While I don’t want to dive into the emotion of Depression as it deserves its own story and analysis — the fact of the matter is the causation between Depression and Hope that has an everlasting effect on people. It allows people who feel the darkest and deepest pits of themselves to see some sign of getting out from under the water.

I had the image of pushing a boulder metaphorically uphill in my head for the longest time centering around the emotion of Depression. Getting through the lowest points in my life. And like an addict, it will forever be a battle within. Films like Truman Show, HBO series True Detective, or musical scores from the likes of Ludwig Göransson or Hans Zimmer and other composers truly capture what Hope can do for someone if you hold onto what sparks inside of you from a visceral and emotional response.

— — — — — — — — -

This is an interpretation of one of my favorite movies and how the 4 emotions can be applied:

Up in the Air (released in 2009) by Jason Reitman starring George Clooney, Vera Farmiga, and Anna Kendrick based on the novel of the same name by Walter Kim. In the movie, George’s character, Ryan, has a truly nomadic lifestyle in which he travels around the country firing people for a living. The arc in this story is that he must take Anna Kendrick’s character under his wing to see what it is like to do the job in person vs over a virtual meeting all while meeting a woman who matches his lifestyle. Thematically, Jason Reitman has said the following:

“In one sense, it’s a movie about a man who fires people for a living. In another sense, it’s a movie about a man who collects air miles excessively. In another sense, it’s about a man who meets a woman who’s so similar to him that even though they both believe in the idea of living solo, they begin to fall in love.”

Admittedly, this film hits close to home for me with my own nomadic lifestyle. Emotionally, this film hits all four so well.

Nostalgia, while the weakest of the four in the movie, is more of a subjective emotional effect I experienced. The very reason why cinema is such a strong form of entertainment, we interpret it how we feel is best suited for us. Up in the Air may not have nostalgia thrown in our faces like the rest of the emotions, but I can see the longing for a time that has passed or is passing. The cusp of losing a moment and allowing it to be a memory.

In the case of love, Ryan meets and finds someone who matches his idea of travel perks, nomadic lifestyle, and eventually starts to fall for her even though in his own words he doesn’t need that. The emotional impact of Love starts to have him question his own motivational speeches he does on the side about “emptying one’s backpack” of all burdensome relationships and material possessions. Love is triumphant here. He is later tasked to help his sister’s fiancé the day of their wedding to overcome cold feet of why he should go through with marrying his sister.

Fear comes into place through various forms of the film. In one instance, Fear is what is making Ryan afraid of choosing to be in a relationship with Vera’s character. Another instance is the fear of his lifestyle changing dramatically of not having his comfortable routine disrupted, thus making him settled and stuck in one place. My favorite moment of this emotion being displayed is when Ryan is firing an employee named Bob played by J.K. Simmons. Bob is angry, and hurt, and has a sense of loss as he wonders how he will provide for his family and make a living at his age. Ryan realizes that Bob took this job out of college as it was the first job given to him and explains to him that he had a rich background of culinary arts experience, but never went through with it out of fear.

Hope is the one emotion that you can see in Ryan’s character development throughout the film. While a tragic end to the stake of his potential relationship with Vera character — He uses Hope as an action to go to Chicago and tell her he loves her — only to find out she is already married with children. Truly heartbreaking to see after being invested in what the outcome could be, it is a reflection of how life can throw these curveballs no matter the emotions taking place. Another example is to conclude the story of Ryan talking with Bob about giving up his dreams, he instills Hope in Bob by asking when he is going to go back to doing something that brings him happiness. If not for him, but for his family.

— — — — — — — — -

Road trips are a beautiful thing for me from a cathartic point of view. I find the most peace in driving. It allows me to think and decipher the various experiences throughout my day, week, month, or even year. Driving puts me at ease but also gives me the multi-sensory experience I am known for. From the smell of different areas, the visuals of small towns, big cities, and greenery in the Northeast to the majestic landscape of the Rockies and beautiful sunsets of the west coast. The sounds of the wind passing by or waves crashing to the taste of foods across state lines and country borders. It also allows me to feel all these emotions so perfectly and imperfectly. The love of the road and unknown but fear of missing home or a moment with friends/family. The hope to find something new about myself or interact with someone or something, to the nostalgia that comes with knowing I will look back on the memories with a different lens.

Matthew McConaughey had recorded and released a short video on road trips that encapsulated the feeling of it quite well:

“I love road trips, I think I’ve learned more on road trips than I’ve learned just about anywhere else in life. It’s like a classroom it’s, like an office, it’s a place where my memory catches up with me. It’s a place where I get far enough away from my past that I’m not worried about it and something about that makes me not even worried about my damn future and I can be present and then all of a sudden my past and the future all makes hell more sense. Road trips are so good for us and the Head and the heart and the spirit.”

A friend of mine I met only a little over a year ago who I mentioned above, Andi Wetter, both have shared quite a similar path in our outlook on life and career. While he is from and currently lives in Switzerland, we both lived with one another during his year in NYC. He and I managed to have some incredible experiences and shared many of the above emotions.

Andi has been someone who I am grateful to have met as it showcases these emotions truly cross borders, languages, cultures, ideologies, and lifestyles. One thing he left me with before we both left NYC was don’t worry about something that hasn’t passed yet. Paraphrasing here, but Andi mentioned one day we will look back at wanting to spend every penny we have to relive these moments, so appreciate it presently.

I believe our own perspective and perception of life can create an experience for each emotion differently. Take, for instance, a rollercoaster at a theme park. One remembers it through nostalgia as a childhood memory, another individual may love the thrill of the ride or will fear even going near it, and someone uses the emotion of hope as a metaphor for overcoming an obstacle or challenge in life.

We all feel it differently and yet similarly no matter who we are. So be honest with yourself and live presently to experience them all. It is ok to embrace these emotions and ask questions like what is the purpose of an ant’s existence. I am thankful for my grandmother to be someone who is open to having those discussions and I encourage others to dig deeper with friends and family. A natural part of life is to be peculiar and question things.

As Jason Sudeikis's character Ted Lasso puts it:

“Be Curious, Not Judgmental.”