Lies, All Lies

_Source

_{They lied
About being a child
Pretty and carefree
Harmless like water
They never told me about the world
Or the cruelty of it
I had to learn way too early
To not be too trusting
That day in the alley, I was only walking home after school
The blow on the temple, the metallic taste of blood
I went home numbly, knowing I’d never be a child again
They never told me}

_{They lied
About growing up and making decisions
They made it seem easy and beautiful
The way you eat your favourite candy
Licking your fingers with reckless abandon
They never warned me about the difficulties
And the pain bad decisions bring
They made adulting seem easy
And painted people with bright colours
Forgetting to remind me to always pause and discern
They never told me}

_{They lied
About life and choices
They said my future is in my hands
But they made those decisions for me
They forced things I wouldn’t choose on me
Choices I wouldn’t make myself
It didn’t matter if I liked it or not
This is the best thing for you, they said
They made me accept them
While emphasizing on how lucky I am
They forgot to teach me to appreciate life and little things
They never told me}

_{They lied
About people and relationships
They never warned me about the toxicity
The destruction the wrong crowd could cause
And the stress bad relationship brings
They didn’t teach me that actions have consequences
They encouraged me to go all out and make friends
Without saying how to spot the real ones
Or what to do when faced with the fake ones
They called everyone beautiful
And gave me a pat whenever I returned with news about betrayal
They never told me}

_{They lied
About love and passion
They said that love would come at the right time
And forgot to tell me that it could also come and go
They failed to mention that falling in love is one thing
But staying and making it work is a decision
They made me believe love is given freely
How could it be free when everyone wants something in return?
How could it be free when it comes with conditions?
They taught me to never hold back
But failed to warn me that my love wouldn’t always be accepted
They never told me}

I started writing this poem after I remembered a write up I read on Facebook a long time ago. The writer was a just called to bar law student lamenting on how everyone lied and made everything seem easy. It just made me remember that growing up, almost everything was a lie. People, relationships. We had to learn the hard way. For some people, they learned and grew. For others, they only got stuck till it swallowed them, mostly because they didn’t know how to walk past it. They weren’t strong enough and had to guidance. So, they just gave in to it. It became their normal.

Tell me your thoughts.