by Carla Baron

Created on: November 30, 2008

Honesty is always the best policy. Being honest does not always mean that you have to say something in a way that is hurtful to someone. Some people are afraid that if they are honest they may hurt someone's feelings. But it's how you say it that's important.

When growing up we learn through our experience at times that being honest can get us into trouble. We start to smoke at a young age or we cut classes. We do something we don't want our parents to find out about so we lie. We lie because we are afraid that if we tell the truth we will be punished. Punishment could be staying home for a weekend to actually catching a good spanking. Sometimes both. Unfortunately it's our parents that teach us it's sometimes better to lie than the tell the truth. They of course don't mean to do that. That is not their intention at all.

Now in an ideal world where parents encourgage telling the truth and are open to the truth that would not happen. We would not learn how to lie or when to lie. In fact we would learn that being honest is a good thing. One would think I can be honest and open and if I am than the outcome will be more rewarding than if I get caught telling a lie. Punishment would only be used if I lie or get caught in a lie. Unfortunately that is not always the way it works. In some households maybe but I would think in a majority of households this tends to be less true. Sometimes by telling the truth you were punished anyway. Therefore children, teenagers learn how to lie and when to lie.

As we reach adulthood however we learn through our own experiences that telling the truth is better than to tell a lie. We are no longer subjected to our parents. We are now subjected to our own experience and our own need for truth. When we get involved in relationships the truth becomes essential. it matters. It matters to us and we learn that those that lie hurt us. We become cognizant of the truth. We undertand truths importance. We seek honesty and because it is now important to us we become more honest and truthful ourselves.

How honest or truthful one becomes is life is not the same for everyone. To some of us it's more important than anything to others this may not be true. To some they may believe it is better not to tell the truth because the truth hurts. Yes that, can be true however what is also true is that the truth comes out. It will eventually come out and the person that has been lied to or not told the truth will be even more hurt at that point than they would

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