Today we had a staff meeting. As part of the agenda, in an attempt to bring some humor and light-heartedness to the flow of the program, a few members of the staff had been asked to submit “two truths and a lie” about ourselves.

Now, if you’re not familiar with the game, here’s how it works. You write out two facts about yourself that may sound far-fetched, but are true. In addition, you tell something else that actually is not true, but seems like it could be (especially if people may not know you well.)

I was one who had been solicited to play. I thought it would be easy. It wasn’t. I never thought about it before, but the process of telling stories – true or false – about oneself is quite interesting. You have to decide a few things right up front.

• How honest do you want to be?
• What do you want people to know?
• What don’t people already know?
• What is appropriate to share about other people as you talk about yourself?
• What are you okay with lying about?
• If you tell the truth (or a lie), do you do it directly or in a roundabout way?

I felt stuck. Thanks to this blog and my big mouth (I’m an open book), what DON’T people know about me? It was my husband who saved my day. Thanks to his creative direction, here’s what I volunteered:

1. I starred in a movie that was filmed by a guy who was known for making porn movies.
2. I slow-danced at party with Prince Albert of Monaco.
3. I’ve skied a mountain at 12,000 feet; jumped from a plane at 10,000 feet; and went diving at 100 feet below sea level.

Shocked? Confused? Skeptical? Here are the stories behind the “two truths and a lie.”

1. TRUE. In the early seventy’s, when my family lived in Israel, my parents befriended a guy who lived at the same absorption center in which we did. Hal’s was a “rags to riches to rags” story. He went from nowhere to living in Beverly Hills and driving a Bentley. In the middle of it all, he was a writer and producer of porn films. Then, after divorces, tragedies, and losing everything, he moved to Israel to start over (or hide out!). Hal got himself a job with the Jewish Agency for Israel to direct and produce a short film about making aliyah – moving to Israel. The movie featured my family.

Hal is now deceased. I don’t believe there’s anything about him or his porn films on the Internet. But, the film we made with him is on YouTube.

2. TRUE. I attended Smith College. Prince Albert of Monaco attended Amherst College (down the road from Smith). In the spring of 1981, before he graduated, I (a sophomore) was invited with a few friends to attend a party at one of Amherst’s fraternities. As I was slow dancing with a guy from Greece, he cut it short to introduce me to his friend, Albert Grimaldi, from Monaco.  (Sigh!)

The Prince was charming; a total gentleman. And, though I’m sure the introduction created no lasting memory for him, it certainly did for me.

3. FALSE. I ski. I scuba dive. But I NEVER will jump out of a plane. Ever!

The reactions of my colleagues to my “two truths and a lie” were interesting. Many laughed. Quite a few came up to me after the meeting wanting the full stories. Others just teased me.

At the end of the day, it comes down to this…how well do you REALLY know (or want to know) your colleagues and friends?