The Truth About Lies!

When we are young our parents are responsible for making sure that we are taught our life skills, skills that will become important in later years. One of these behavioural lessons centres on telling the truth and often this lesson would be backed up by them saying- 'the truth will always out, therefore it will be easier if you confess now!'

When I was young I always found that when eventually I did confess the saying never applied as I was punished for lying and further punished for waiting for the second time of asking to tell the truth.
The funny thing about all of this is as adults we spend the first years of a wee ones life telling lies to our wee ones without fear of punishment. Not so long ago it was a wee lie about a man with a beard and a red suit quickly followed this week with a story of a certain bunny that carries chocolate eggs around!! And lets not forget the fairies, Jack Frost and the bogeyman! All used to get a certain reaction at a certain time by us- the very people teaching our wee ones about the consequences of lying! This will come back home to bit us eventually as below shows.

No wonder as they get older they think there is a sliding scale of lies- you know from a wee row to being grounded for life! No wonder they have the ability to spin a wee story in an attempt to get away with any mischief they may have got up to-they are learning from the best after all!
It got me to thinking about my own kids when they were young, and some of the tricks I used to get to the truth of the matter. My Daughter was a great one for a story, and even more so if she thought she had a chance of wriggling out of the particular situation she was in.
Sadly for my daughter she fell for the old stick your tongue out and if it is black you must be fibbing routine. Now the daughter thinking she had got wise to this ploy started to refuse to stick her tongue out when in trouble not realising she was confirming the wee lie by doing so! To this day my daughter gives away a wee fib when she firmly closes her mouth and puts her tongue firmly in her cheek.
These days being a granddad and of course being old and wise -okay slight fib- I have many new tricks up my sleeve for the poor unsuspecting wee one. Now I thought these tricks were for days far off but it seems that like all things the wee one does she is a head of the game!!
The other day all was quiet in the household and to be honest I was enjoying it. I had not put two and two together though when I should have! It was only as the peace and quiet continued for five minutes too long that I went to investigate, it did not take long to be confronted by the wee one, Who could see that she might just be in trouble, so as quick as I was getting closer to the scene she started telling me her uncle had done it, not only that the uncle had an accomplice in the ASBO gardener aka papa and the family dog had played the job of look out so he was also involved in the wrong doings!
So before I could see the damage and any mayhem that had been caused, she took my hand and led me to their crime scene all the time telling me how naughty they were and how innocent she was!
Sadly for the wee one like her mother when she was young she can spin a story, but cannot hide her guilt. This time granddads trick{lie} was to let her think it was funny, and with that being the case the wee one took full credit for the crime scene- I wonder if that trick will work again? and further as parents do we ever stop telling fibs-I for one would be on the naughty step everyday, because when my wife says do I look fat in this- there is only one correct answer!!