**Steem4nigeria Accelerator Contest Week 63:The Lies I Grew Up Believing

As children, we trusted our parents, but they told us many lies to protect and calm us down. Furthermore, we believed all of their lies and behaved accordingly.

This competition is a very lovely one, as it takes us back to our childhood. Let me now share my thoughts on the matter.

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I used to believe a lot of lies as a kid. These lies were told to me by well-educated people like my parents and elders. They thought it was a great method to protect me, but those lies shaped my view of the world negatively.

One of the first lies I remember was, "If you swallow a seed, a tree will grow in your stomach." This was a common lie almost every child heard. It scared me so much that I would never even think of swallowing a seed. I was scared that a tree would grow inside me, and I imagined branches would come out of my ears. It took me years to realize that this could not have happened, and once I felt as silly for being so afraid.

Another such lie that my elders told me was, “If you don’t behave well, a monster will come and take you away”. As a child, I wondered where those monsters lived and why they only brought away mischievous children, and this lie worked. Those days I behaved well, believing that the monster would take me away. But as I grew older, I realized that there were no monsters. My parents wanted me to see myself as a good child, and they used this lie to ensure I listened to them.

Another lie they told me was, "You need to finish everything on your plate, or the food will cry." This made me feel guilty every time I didn't finish my food. I thought that my leftover food would cry in sadness. Until I was older, I did not understand that food can’t cry, and this was merely a trick to stop me from wasting food.

When I found out the truth about these lies, I had mixed feelings. Once I was happy by realizing that the terrifying things I believed in weren't true. However, I was upset at another moment. I felt that I was fooled, and I wondered why our adults told us such lies. I believe it's better to tell children the truth in a way they can understand. Lies, even small ones, can confuse children and make them doubt what is real and what is not.

Now that I’m older, I understand why these lies were told. Because most of the time parents want to protect their kids from fear or danger, they think that telling little lies is not harmless. But in my view, I think it is better to tell the truth to the kids in a way they can understand them. Even though the lies are tiny, they can confuse kids without understanding what is real and what is not.

I think it's important to respect children and trust that they can handle the truth. For example, instead of saying a monster will come if you misbehave, we can explain the consequences of bad behavior calmly and honestly. In the end, the truth is always better. Lies might work for a short time, but the truth helps young minds grow and understand the world around them.

Invite to

@muthu14
@sur-riti
@rosselena

Contest announcement here..👈

Thank you for reading my post.