Bernie (Blue) De Koven is a fun theorist. A shaman of fun and play (Wired Interview). He is also terminally ill. Through supporting a game of legacy, I asked him these questions:

“How do you live, a life well lived?

If you would do life differently - what would you do?

What would you tell your 40-year-old self?

If these are the better days of an early nation, what should I do?”

To understand Bernie’s life’s work, read the start of the introduction to his book: A Playful Path (free ebook available here) his website on his life work and collection of games.

"When you are playful, when you are feeling, being playful, you are walking a playful path. When you are having fun, when you are graceful, when you are in harmony with your self in the world, when you feel alive, when you are delighted and delightful, surprised and surprising, loving, caring; you are dancing on a playful path. When you are playing, when you are at play, in play, when you are fully playing, when you are playing playfully, you are creating a playful path.

When you stop playing, stop being playful, when you become inflexible, unresponsive, insensitive, humorless, fearful, frenzied, you are on some other path entirely.

For adults, following a playful path is a practice, something you put into practice, and then practice some more. When you were a kid, it wasn’t a practice. It was what you did, always. You had to be reminded not to be playful.  And you were. O, yes, you were. But now that you have become what you, as a kid, called “an adult,” you find that play is something you have to remind your self to do, playful something you have to allow your self to be.

And once you again take up that playful path you knew so well, you discover that it’s different, you’re different. You can play much more deeply than you could before. You are stronger, you understand more, you have more power, better toys. You discover that you, as a playful being, can choose a different way of being.  A way of being as large as life.  A way of being you, infinitely.”

You can listen to Tassos Stevens and Bernie discuss my questions here.

You can read more about the Game of Legacy (kickstarter here).  And see a piece of it here:  http://www.alegacyofplay.net/

You can see the questions on the site here.

The very short answers would be:

A life well lived...

It’s a life that brings joy to the person who is living it and to those who are living it with her

Believe in the truth as you discover it - let go of the truth that no longer serves you

Celebrate while you can - prepare while you can’t

Be inspired at what lands at you - follow that as far as it goes…

If you'd like to feel inspired by commencement addresses and life lessons try:  Neil Gaiman on making wonderful, fabulous, brilliant mistakes; or Nassim Taleb's commencement address; or JK Rowling on the benefits of failure.  Or Charlie Munger on always inverting;  Sheryl Sandberg on grief, resilience and gratitude or investor Ray Dalio on  on Principles.

Cross fertilise. Read about the autistic mind here.