Ulog 8 | Tell me One More Lie

In my brief life ongoing life on earth, I have had the privilege of meeting different kinds of people. One of the things I have often try to glean from my various experiences is to understand other people's motivation for doing things. And one of those things in particular is lying.

So I met this guy about a year back. He’s someone you would describe as having a big mouth. Mention anything that brings the biggest applause, respect or payout and he already has something to chip in. In his eyes, he is a big boy. He is at the height of it all (or so is the impression he gives.) it is one thing to have a big mouth, it is another to spew lies out of them.

When I think of him, I remember my addiction to lying too. You know, it is quite easy to focus someone else’s vice and not realising your are suffering from the same problem. I am what you would describe as a pathological liar. I don’t lie on purpose. I have nothing to gain from telling a lie. I am quite comfortable with the truth.

It took me a (rather) long while to realise I get bored quite easily with the ordinary. I often felt the need to spice things to a little bit. But then, we know that anything false added to the truth invalidates it. It. How did I help my condition?

First off, I had to understand my reasons for lying. Except in normal situations where I lied to protect myself from unfavourable situations, my lies most times were automated creations of my imaginative mind. Each time I heard a story, I could imagine a lot of scenarios that would make it better. I’ve seen a lot of movies where a character tells a compelling story in a very interesting way. I mean, ordinary stories can become legends with the inclusion of a few key ingredients . I wanted to be like that.

Well, if I couldn’t spice up real life, why didn’t I just create lies, tell people they are lies from the onset and regal them (and sometimes myself) with my awesome tales. To be honest, I have never felt better. Here’s how it works. Each time I’m with a group of friends and someone shares an interesting gist or story, I would ask myself if I had a similar experience. I rarely do. Even when I do, it often pales in comparison to what was offered as a conversation starer. So I began my input with, “what if…”

Let’s say someone tells an interesting tale of his trophy at an athletic event. (Apart from irregular jogging to strengthen my easily fatigued heart, I am not athletic in anyway.) I would start with, “what if you fell somewhere at the start but won the race. It would be something you know; especially with all of the girls that must have been looking up to you.”

You see, right there… that's my fantasy playing out. Now, which would you prefer? That or a lie? I would go for that.

Anyway, that’s what fuels my stories. I just think of a real scenario and spice it up. I recently submitted an entry for a competition here on Steemit. It is titled An Appointment in Samara. The rules was to pick a folklore at random and retell it in a creative way. I choose an old fable of a man who tried to outrun death but only ended up running into death’s waiting arms. I changed a lot of details though.

And there you have it. I could say more, but then, I might have to tell a lie

Lol

Blessings