Truth or Dare; To Tell the Truth; I promise to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth; Truth or Consequences...and on and on. As Americans we seem to spend a lot of time searching for the truth. There have been numerous TV shows and board games based on this premise. But just how far are we willing to go to be the truthful people we confess to be.
I've always tried to be a truthful and honest person, but, if I'm totally honest here, I haven't always succeeded. You see, I have a real problem intentionally hurting someone's feelings. I guess I bought into the whole "little white lie" for the sake of keeping the peace or not hurting someone's feelings propaganda. You know what "they" always say, "What's the harm if no one gets hurt?". (By the way, wouldn't you love to know who "they" are...these unnamed people who we are always quoting?)
One of my favorite bloggers, Jo, http://jo-mywanderingmind.blogspot.com made a strong case for always telling the truth in all circumstances. In theory I agree with her, but again, being totally honest, I'm not sure I will always be able to follow through with it. If faced with a situation where I would have to hurt someone's feelings by telling the whole truth and nothing but, I can't promise I won't revert back to my old ways of telling the "little white lie".
Of course I would never hide the truth in really important situations where lives could be changed or someone could be injured or harmed. I'm talking those instances where your girlfriend says doesn't my hair look awful today and you know it does but you also know she doesn't have the time to do anything about it, so why make her miserable worrying about it. Or you know the big one..."Does my butt look fat in these pants?" Can you tell me you really want to be brutally honest in these situations? If it is something they can do something about yes, but if not, why make them more miserable. Am I really a horrible person for feeling this way. I don't know, I'll let you decide.
Until next time...that's my view. (And that's the honest truth!)
Kat
