My Brother and I Played the Game "We're Not Really Strangers" and Here's What Happened

“We’re Not Really Strangers” is a card game that is created for people to open up and deepen their relationships with those around them. The cards come in multiple levels that are titled perception, connection, reflection, and so on. The creator of the game, Koreen, brought We’re Not Really Strangers to life in an attempt for people to ask themselves hard hitting questions and to create meaningful bonds with others through engaging conversation.

The questions hit you like a bus. So, I decided to ask my 22 year old brother, Kiernan, WNRS questions without him viewing them first. Although the experience would be better in person, I called him on a Thursday night around 7:30 and picked his brain.

Naturally, his answers were interrupted with a lot of “umms” and “oh wow, this is a hard question, let me think.”

I planned to make these visuals more poetic, but I liked the irony of deep answers paired with amateur stick figures. Accompanied by these quick doodles of him (not drawn to size), here are Kiernan’s answers.

I added my thoughts along the way, because these questions really do make you think.

One truth that I have come to terms with is that not everyone is going to have the same heart as you. You can give someone so much and get nothing in return. Not everyone means what they say as much as the people who mean every word that comes out of their mouth. Especially these days, you have to make sure you look after yourself.

I feel the most comfortable around people that reciprocate the same energy, if that makes sense. I am a very independent person, so when someone gives me the same peace that I give myself, it just works. The best people to be around are the ones that feel effortless.

I personally want to keep a promise to not be so hard on myself. Not everything in life is that deep. It's way more fun to just live with no high expectations for anything. I definitely want to be nicer to myself and stop overanalyzing every aspect of myself.

I definitely agree and feel like Kiernan is someone I can always go to. I'm glad I grew up with a brother that cares about fostering a relationship with his sister. It has positively impacted my life more than he knows.

It warmed my heart to hear my brother use this word. I wish I could describe my relationship with myself in this way, but I am not fully there yet, which is okay. That day will come!

I feel like this is an "in-between" chapter in my life right now before things get really good. I can feel a positive future beyond what is happening in the world right now. This is a time of self care and focusing on bettering myself for when times go back to normal.

I would be with the people who make me feel the most comfortable. I would be somewhere where it's always warm & I would just feel so at peace.

I think it's important to stop and think about these type of questions once in a while. I encourage anyone reading this to check out WNRS and the questions they pose. It's a calming experience to just think about who you are and what you really want in life.