The question
What would you most want to leave your children?Originally asked
The Guardian, to a different person each week, The Q&A
Verbatim recurring item in The Guardian Q&A; two publisher-hosted respondent pages establish institutional recurrence.
You answer as yourself. Nobody on FLAPSS answers as anybody else.
The notion that anything is possible.
The Q&A, The Guardian, 20 September 2025 source ↗
Resilience, courage and kindness, as compassionate points to follow.
Shortly after my terminal diagnosis, I knew that one of my biggest priorities was to create memories for my children. Chloe and Logan are both so young that it's likely they'll have no direct memories of me. Dylan is the oldest, and at 5 (turns 6 in December), his memories are likely to be fuzzy. Hence the engineering question: What would make for the sharpest, most visceral memory, esp. for a kid who loves animals? Answer: go for a Dolphin Swim!
Ever since they were born, Vic and I have been clear: happiness and confidence are the two things we want most for our children and the rest can all fall into place.
A sense of the world being full of possibility and it being in their hands to make it a better one.
A Porsche 911 Turbo.
Funny, loyal, genuine.
Looking back is not productive.
I was a guard on the Orient Express – however, only when it was stationed at a railway siding in Vauxhall.
Ignorance and rudeness. Decency and a please and thank you cost nothing.
John McCarthy, the journalist who was held captive for five years in Beirut. I’ve met him and he was so full of peace, humility and forgiveness – it was inspiring.
Mark Bonnar, Indira Varma, Derek Sivers, Ben Okri, David Vélez, Dervla Kirwan
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