Lies Catch Up to You

Listen up children!

The lies you tell when you are little can still haunt you when you are almost 35! Don’t believe me? Let me tell you a little story.

A few days ago I was texting my two oldest best friends (or longest…whatever). We were talking about elementary school and bullies. The convo went like this.

Me: I’m trying to remember if Lacy was a bully when we were little?

Lacy: I was too scared of getting in trouble.

Gloria: My earliest Dana story is her telling me about her dead twin.

Lacy: Dead Twin?? What??

I had completely forgotten about my dead twin. If it was true then maybe I would have remembered him or her, but it wasn’t.

You see I was a bit of a liar when I was little. We are talking COMPULSIVE LIAR! I just couldn’t help myself. I don’t know if I thought my life was too boring or if I wanted a different life or I watched too much All My Children at a young age, but I had killed off both of my grandmothers by the third grade.

I got busted with every lie. I am sure my poor mom hated open house when I teacher would say, “I’m sorry to hear about your mother passing away.” My mom’s response was always “my mother passed away?”

Like the day she picked me up early to due snow in the fourth grade and had to ask herself outloud “Dana danced in the Nutcracker during Christmas break? I don’t remember Dana going to New York.” I still hear about that one every Christmas.

Flash forward 26 years and I am explaining to my best friends that I never had a twin – which they knew. It’s ok…they’ve known I was crazy for a long time. I don’t know what I was thinking at the age of nine. Gloria said on her first day of school I walked up to her and said “Hi I’m Dana and I had a twin sister that died.” Man, I needed some help!

As, I got older I realized life is dramatic enough and there is no need to embellish. Now, I know what my mom means when she says Shelby comes by lying naturally – we struggle and she gets busted every time, the same as me. I tell her over and over that lying doesn’t work and it’s not right – she’s heard the nutcracker story too. I think I’ll keep the dead twin a secret for a bit longer – still a bit embarrassed about that one myself. I will remember to tell her that her lies with haunt her…she could be explaining them 26 years.

I have to say I am happy I have friends who know things about me when I was 9 and before. I love my girl friends – they mean the world to me! I am glad they love me and all my craziness!