I had never lied in my life and definitely have not repeated the process. But I lied! One of my best new found friends was having a birthday party towards the end of Grade 10 and asked me to attend as a date for one of her cousins. I had never had a date and I knew it was out of the question as far as my mother was concerned after all I was fifteen, I could no more ask her if I could go on a date than I could ask her if I could fly to the moon; first of all the moon was still ‘green cheese’; an impossible dream.
After much cajoling from my friends I finally agreed; and told my mother I had been invited to a girls birthday party. I did not tell her I would be in the company of a young man. The party was okay….I was so shy; even holding hands was out of the question. And actually dancing with a boy! Treading foreign ground for sure! I managed to get through the evening with a lot of teasing and a brilliant red face. Definitely an uncomfortable evening!
The next day the young man called and invited me to go on a family picnic and swim with his family. I told my mother, once again, I had been invited by my girl friend and she consented. I don’t know whether my mother became suspicious or what …. She called my girl friends house a few hours later to see what time we would be home and learned my friend was at home and I was out with her male cousin. She came to the lake to warn me. I knew I was dead if I went home!
The young man and his entire family came home with me under the assumption that if mother met the entire family she would have no qualms. So home I went….to meet my entire family, mother, siblings, grandparents, aunts and uncles! Ruby had lied! The entire family was involved.
End result – I was grounded for the entire summer. I could go to work each morning with just enough time to make it to work and was expected home within a half hour after work. The price of lying! The young man and I wrote letters back and forth the entire summer; my mother would secretly steam the letters open and read them before she handed them to me. It took three long months before mother finally consented, with the intervention of my stepfather finally convincing her there would be no harm in my going to an early movie with the young man at least once a week! So it was, I was finally allowed to date this young man….to the 7 pm movie, and had to arrive home safe and sound within a half hour after movie ended.
A definite turning point in my life experience; the penalties paid for lying were definitely not worth the pleasure derived from the lie!
The description of the paint used here can be read in my other blog:-
Effervescence of Love
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