That they were loved.
What would you like to leave your children?
Question
What has been your biggest disappointment?
Failure & regret
Question
What keeps you awake at night?
Daily life
Question
What scares you about getting older?
Time & hindsight
Question
How would you describe yourself in three words?
Identity & self
Question
What did you want to be when you were growing up?
Identity & self
Question
What is the book you have given most as a gift, and why?
Taste & recommendation
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.
I want to leave my children three foundational tools to navigate the world:
Life skills: The practical capability and independence to take care of themselves, solve everyday problems, and handle adult responsibilities with ease.
Confidence: A self-belief rooted in resilience, knowing they have worth, deserve to take up space, and can handle failure without letting it define them.
A sense of humor: The ability to find levity in life's absurdity, laugh at themselves, and keep perspective when things don't go according to plan.
If they leave home with these three things, they'll have everything they need to build a meaningful life.
Others on this question
View all 53 →I’d like them to inherit my optimism.
As little rubbish to sort through as possible.
Henry R. Kravis
Financier; co-founder of Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co.
I think some of the most important things parents can provide for their children are unconditional love, education and a spirit of independence.
More from @aliabbasi
View profile →Not being able to start my own company
Working on new ideas and driving
Disability
Positive, Confident, Easy Going
A pilot
The power of the mind by Josef Morphy
More on death & what remains
- What would you like to be remembered for? 228 answers
- How close have you come to death? 214 answers
- What song would you like played at your funeral? 179 answers
- What happens when we die? 56 answers
- If you had only one day left to live, how would you spend it — and what would you deliberately avoid doing? 54 answers
- How would you like to die? 46 answers
Also answered this
David Vélez, Ben Okri, Adam Clayton, Ja’Tovia Gary, Warren Buffett, Rebecca Lucy Taylor
Search the directory for somebody in particular.
Explore further
- All death & what remains questions
- The The Q&A questionnaire — 25 questions from the same format
- Explore the archive — by field, age, era, and subject