[James Matthew Najera]

General Discussion Thread 06.30.2025​

Hey GrayViners!

Let’s have a little laugh this morning—because we all have at least one of these!

What was a lie you were told as a kid… that you later found out wasn’t quite true in the funniest way possible?

I’ll go first: When I was little, I fully believed that if I swallowed a watermelon seed, one would start growing in my belly. I spent an entire summer avoiding them like they were poison—checking every bite like a detective! Turns out, the only thing growing was my imagination.

Now it’s your turn! Did someone convince you that the ice cream truck only played music when it was out of ice cream? Or that your belly button could unravel if you twisted it too much?

Drop your story below—we could all use a good chuckle today!

Cheers!
Blue

 

[terriespell]

My mother couldn’t swim, but my Dad like to go surf fishing on the sand at the beach,She would tell me that if I went out into the ocean water ,there was a gigantic hole right at the waves and I would fall in..needless to say I was truly afraid until I was about 12.

 

[bobbibonn]

We had a huge field in back of our house, and we were not allowed to venture out beyond the fence because there were open wells in the field and if we were to fall in we would never be found. One day a few of us ventured beyond the fence and never found any wells, however, we did get turned around and could not find our way back home and when we did we got great big hugs, then a spanking for disobeying our parents. Needless to say this was back in the day when spanking was allowed.

 

[Arkie98]

We were always told tell a lie and a sore will grow on your tongue. Am sure we did tell occasionally but once my sister bit her tongue and it was sore. Was so afraid to tell Mom.

 

[debbierey75]

Our Nana was smart. She told us that if we told a lie, a black cross would appear on our foreheads. She could always tell when we were lying because we would put our hands over our forehead so she couldn't see the cross. She also told us that eating the crust on bread would give us curly hair like Shirley Temple.

 

[bobbibonn]

Our Nana was smart. She told us that if we told a lie, a black cross would appear on our foreheads. She could always tell when we were lying because we would put our hands over our forehead so she couldn't see the cross. She also told us that eating the crust on bread would give us curly hair like Shirley Temple.

I always think that when someone mentions a sore tongue I say you must have told a lie. That was a real popular old wives tale.

 

[debbierey75]

I used to tell my children it was the Music Man. It worked for a while, then the other kids told them it was the ice cream man.

 

[Gayle B.]

There were more than we could ever remember. One was that if we made a face it would freeze like that forever. If we didn’t clean our ears we would grow potatoes in them. If we stepped on a crack it break our mother’s back. Don’t try to find the end of a rainbow because we’d fall into the pot of gold and never be found again. That’s the ones I can think of right now.
We too heard about swallowing a watermelon seed. If they saw someone with an enlarged belly it was proof that they had swallowed the seed. Parents, go figure huh? Then again they are the same parents that told us that Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny were real! We bought off on those gems, didn’t we?

 

[Butterflies]

If you make face it could freeze like that

 

[TriciaR]

My mother couldn’t swim, but my Dad like to go surf fishing on the sand at the beach,She would tell me that if I went out into the ocean water ,there was a gigantic hole right at the waves and I would fall in..needless to say I was truly afraid until I was about 12.

Thank you for sharing that @terriespell ! It’s amazing how seriously we take those warnings as kids — especially when they come from someone we trust like Mom. I can just picture little you standing at the edge of the waves, terrified of that “giant hole”! Do you remember what finally convinced you it wasn’t real — or did someone have to coax you into the water?

 

[TriciaR]

We had a huge field in back of our house, and we were not allowed to venture out beyond the fence because there were open wells in the field and if we were to fall in we would never be found. One day a few of us ventured beyond the fence and never found any wells, however, we did get turned around and could not find our way back home and when we did we got great big hugs, then a spanking for disobeying our parents. Needless to say this was back in the day when spanking was allowed.

Thanks so much for sharing that memory @bobbibonn — what a mix of adventure, relief, and a touch of old-school discipline! It’s funny how those scary stories stuck with us, even if they weren’t exactly true. Do you think your parents really believed there were open wells out there, or was it just their clever way of keeping you close to home? And how long did it take before you dared to explore again?

 

[TriciaR]

We were always told tell a lie and a sore will grow on your tongue. Am sure we did tell occasionally but once my sister bit her tongue and it was sore. Was so afraid to tell Mom.

Thank you for sharing that @Arkie98 — what a classic! That “sore on your tongue” warning really stuck with so many of us. Poor sister — she must’ve been terrified thinking the lie finally caught up with her! Did she eventually tell your mom what happened, or did she just try to hide it and hope it went away? Funny how those little fibs from childhood stick in our minds for years!

 

[TriciaR]

Our Nana was smart. She told us that if we told a lie, a black cross would appear on our foreheads. She could always tell when we were lying because we would put our hands over our forehead so she couldn't see the cross. She also told us that eating the crust on bread would give us curly hair like Shirley Temple.

That is brilliant — thank you for sharing @debbierey75 ! Your Nana was clearly a master of creative parenting. I love the image of you all quickly covering your foreheads to hide that “black cross” — she must’ve had a hard time keeping a straight face! And the curly hair trick… did it work? Did anyone actually end up with Shirley Temple curls thanks to all that bread crust?

 

[TriciaR]

There were more than we could ever remember. One was that if we made a face it would freeze like that forever. If we didn’t clean our ears we would grow potatoes in them. If we stepped on a crack it break our mother’s back. Don’t try to find the end of a rainbow because we’d fall into the pot of gold and never be found again. That’s the ones I can think of right now.
We too heard about swallowing a watermelon seed. If they saw someone with an enlarged belly it was proof that they had swallowed the seed. Parents, go figure huh? Then again they are the same parents that told us that Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny were real! We bought off on those gems, didn’t we?

This had me smiling from start to finish — thank you for sharing such a great collection @Gayle B. ! It’s amazing how many of those wild little warnings were passed around like gospel truth. The potatoes-in-the-ears one is a new favorite! Do you remember which one you believed the longest? And did anyone in your family actually try to find the end of a rainbow… or avoid stepping on cracks just in case? Kids’ imaginations mixed with grown-up mischief — what a combo!

 

[TriciaR]

If you make face it could freeze like that

Thanks for sharing that classic @Butterflies ! That “frozen face” warning definitely made a lot of us behave — at least for a little while! Did you ever test it out in front of a mirror just to see if it might really happen?