"Bending the Truth" by Genghis

Growing up with strict parents I have learned two vital tools. To improvise, and to bend the truth. And by bend the truth, I mean just that; as lying has a different connotation. Simply what I mean is that I’ll always tell the truth however at times I won’t be very specific or I’ll withhold information I’d otherwise specify. I don’t do it because I want to, rather it’s out of necessity. As an only, first generation child, my parents are obligated to be as overprotective as they are. And I appreciate that, I know that they restrict me to protect me, and at the end of the day it's because they care about me. But, it can be hard to breathe with that amount of restriction.

The main reason their restrictions bother me is that it prevents me from making stupid mistakes. Mistakes that I need in order to mature and never make when I’m older. Most of my friends honestly can’t fathom that I’ve never had a sleepover or been paintballing.

I remember the first time I bent the truth to get out of the house. I had to stay after school for something I can’t remember, however the teacher was not there. I decided to go downstairs and just wait for my ride. I met a couple of friends there. They had invited me earlier in the week to go see a movie with them, Now You See Me 2. They knew my situation, but figured to ask anyways in case I was somehow allowed to. Of course I tested my luck and asked for permission, to which my dad replied, “No” without hesitation. They informed me about how they were waiting for their ride, a friend’s older brother, to pick them up. I then thought about it. I really wanted to go. It wasn’t because it was a cool movie, it wasn’t because I wanted to rebel. It was because I felt that I needed more experiences in my life. I wanted to be social but my parent’s rules forced me into being an introvert. So I made the most important decision of my life, to make my own decisions and go with my gut. Instead of texting my Dad that I was done, I told him I would finish at 5:00PM. I then went with them, that warm, June day to see a movie. I still have the ticket, and since that day I have collected every movie ticket in my wallet. Not only did that movie mean a great deal to me in terms of personal development, it was the last movie I got to see with my close friend Hamza who passed away two months later. Since then, movies with friends has been much more meaningful to me personally.

Since then, my parents have become much more lenient. My dad tells me his main concern was that he did not trust teen drivers and did not want to risk me getting into a car accident. Since I have a car and license now, my parents rarely say no. Of course they still restrict me from driving at night and driving my friends, I know they do it for my safety. And for the meantime, I’ll take what I can get and not be a brat.