On Lying.

Some of my friends think i’m thirty, others think I’m twenty-five but i love to say that i’m forty! Why is that? Because we all lie. Lying is becoming an intrinsic part of human nature. We lie at least five times a day and sometimes for things that aren’t worth lying for. You lie about wanting to spend time with someone while you’d rather be snuggled up in your couch watching a nice movie with some popcorn and your beloved pyjamas.

Why do we actually lie?

The main reason we lie in my belief is because we want to keep appearances. An unfaithful husband usually the first time he cheats actually buys a bouquet of roses for his wife or offers her something special. He is guilty of breaking their vow and doesn’t want that to be shown so in order to trick his brain into accepting the adulterous relationship, he tries to make his wife happy and take away a little part of the guilt.

Lying helps us cope in a world that is more and more infatuated with what we call in France le “paraître”. With all the social media and people going to greater lengths to prove how “awesome” their lives are, we are left with nothing but lies. Consumerism shows us that lies are good. That product that is supposed to be a perfect solution to your problem in the end doesn’t solve it and that’s okay. The ladies with their luxury bags and the men with their luxury watches on instagram make you think that they’re probably really happy. Nonetheless, when you search a little deeper, we are all lonely and we lie to others so they see not the pain we go through each day. A thousand likes on Facebook or instagram fuel the cycle of lies that each day get more and more rooted into our beings.

We lie because society teaches us that it’s the easiest thing to do in a difficult situation. That’s why most people don’t face their greatest fears, because it’s easier for their brains yo make up a wonderfully insane story about how their fears are justified or just too big to be overcome. Politicians lie every day and even medical doctors lie. Doctors don’t like to disclose bad news so they tell you it’ll be okay until you find yourself on “death-row” and they are pushed into a corner. Lying makes living really easy I think. Lying is the path that has made human social interaction even possible. Without us telling lies to people we know or not, our lives would crumble. Imagine tell your boss that you actually mind the more work he or she is about to give you, or telling your mother that for the meantime men don’t interest you and that you like women even though you know she’s a real homophobic person.

We lie because it brings us momentary pleasure. It’s easier today since we distinguish the “good” lies from the “bad” ones. Good lies are meant to preserve happiness in the short term but in the long term, we all know that the bullet will head straight into the betrayed person’s heart. The pain we so desire to preserve them from today will end up being greater in the future than if that pain had been dealt with in the heat of the moment.

We lie because we are afraid, afraid of facing that dirty lying mouth in the mirror. Because we steer away from what is truthful and righteous because the world doesn’t see it that way. Lying is a contributing factor to peer pressure and unhappiness.

But then, should we stop lying?

Even though lying seems to be something exempt from virtue, lying is a fundamental pillar of the society we live in today. Centuries ago lying existed but people were more prone to morality and spoke openly about what they thought in an effort to be good. Today, lying is common and nothing to be appalled about. “It’s just one little lie” we say to ourselves the first time. But a little smoke will rise up to bring up a fire and then burn down the forest. The husband who has been cheating on his wife definitely knows that she’ll eventually find out someday and when that day comes, lives will be broken.

I lie, you lie, he or she lies, we lie, they lie. It’s a nice little tune we play everyday in our lives and i play that tune too. My family isn’t aware in the slightest manner that i’m actually gay, into BDSM, into trading and probably someday into drugs. That’s the reason why I seem so perfect to them. I can’t stop lying about who I am or the secure world which i’ve built for myself will crumble into pieces. I can’t say lying is a good thing but i can say that lying is the reason we have social interactions on day to day basis.

I hope you were pleased reading this short assembly of words and sentences from a learning mind!

P.S. I’m actually Twenty!