The GOOD, The BAD & The MISCHIEF.

My adventures & misadventures in parenting & life.

Monday 6 August 2007

Write Anyway - Lying.

The truth about lies.


Description of the word "lie" according to the webster-merrium dictionary.

Entry Word: lie
Function: noun

Text: a statement known by its maker to be untrue and made in order to deceive
"he wanted to deny the accusation, but he couldn't tell a lie"

Synonyms include: fabrication, fairy tale, falsehood, falsity, fib, mendacity, prevarication, story, tale, untruth, whopper.


We all lie & have lied throughout our lives for many different reasons, from purely selfish ones such as lying to get out of trouble, so we do not have to do something to unselfish, thoughtful reasons such as avoid hurting someones feelings or to help a child keep his childhood beliefs alive that little bit longer.
Many women will have said that their friends new haircut was lovely or that their new boyfriend sees like a nice guy even while hoping & praying that what we really think doesn't have basis in fact.
Not all lies are in fact bad many are said to "be nice & supportive" or to assuage someones fears & hurts.

As a mother I find myself lying almost daily, lies such as "not having any chocolate or biscuits in the house" or that "it's eight p.m & bedtime" when it's only half past seven.
Then there's the lies all parents tell about the existence of the tooth fairy, the easter bunny & father christmas or telling your child the immunisation won't hurt when we know an injection is most likely going to be painful.
Lying becomes second nature once you're the mother of a toddler or older child & although many lies or fibs are told to gain an easier life or ten minutes peace we also lie to extricate ourselves from conversations & activities we know are not going to be enjoyable.

We lie at work or to our partners so we do not get reprimanded or have an argument. Many of us have bought something & subtracted a couple of pounds from the price so our partners won't complain or said something was fun or accomplished easily just to look good at work.
We spend all morning cleaning & tidying the house then apologise to visitors for the "mess" in the hope that they will think we're wonderful at keeping house & if the telephone rings at an inopportune time we will say a hastily created excuse just to get off the phone.

There are so many lies told & reasons for lying, both good & bad that I believe it is an intrinsic part of life both in the family & in society in general.

1 people have experienced mischief:

Anonymous said...

So true...I haven't really thought about how I fool my babies already!