Lying is one of the behavioral habits most people dislike and don't love being told about. I for one detest such and don't appreciate being lied to, and so do I as well try as much as possible to come out plain towards my friends and loved ones, but there have been few occasions where I felt saying the truth might cause a lot of damage and so decided to lie to those involved, believing my lies were for a good course. Today, I'd love to share one such situation with you and my current take on it.
So years ago, when I was just about eighteen years old, we used to have a neighbor who was a young couple and had a son who was five years old. On one faithful day, the father of the boy went to work and died along the way to the office. I guess their vehicle was involved in an accident that claimed the lives of most of the occupants of that vehicle. The wife was informed about the news, fainted, and had to even be rushed to the hospital based on how she took the news.
Later that day I was asked to go pick up their son at the school since the parents weren't around to do that, but then I was warm enough not to for any reason whatsoever tell the boy about what happened to his dad, and so when I arrived at the school and said I'd be the one picking him, the school didn't have any issues with that because I used to sometimes bring him to school before, but there and then while we were returning home, the boy asked me why his mom wasn't the one who came to pick him, and I said she went to the market, and that's why I had to come.
Fast forward to the night of that same day; the mother hasn't returned from the hospital. I guess the news gave her a heart attack that made them admit her to the hospital, so the boy was asked to stay with us. During dinner, he asked me again where his parents are, and I had to tell him another lie to cover up the first one because had the mother gone to the market, then she ought to have been back, so I told him they both traveled and would be back the next day.
The next day arrives, and he goes to school. Before they closed, the mother had arrived, so she was the one who picked him up from school. But fast forward a few days after that incident, and the father was laid to rest, and he saw people gathering around their house for the event. But before it began, I was asked to take him far away from the vicinity of the house. While we were away playing, he began to ask me questions like why there were so many people in the house, why his mother was always sad and crying, and why his dad's banner was placed outside the house.
This was a difficult question to navigate, but then I found a way to maneuver through it all with my lies, which he believes. He even talked about how he'll love to show his dad his most recent drawings when he comes back, unaware that his dad is dead. I'm sure he'll find out later in the near future, but probably because of his age and how close he was to his father then, we had to lie to him not to affect his emotions, because I think he already knows what it means for someone to die.
Talking about the situation of that very day, although I'm sad about it and feel for the boy, if such a situation were to present itself before me again, then I'll still do the same because, for his tender age, it won't be ideal for him to shoulder such a burden of pain.
All photos are taken and edited on canva.