Playing with the Truth

Ever since she was a little girl, Annie’s imagination had known no bounds. She liked listening to all fairy tales and other tall tales most of all. She liked to make them up and create her own stories in her head.

One day after school, the girls decided to play themselves as actresses. Annie watched them making costumes out of paper, trying them on, and she so wanted to join in. But she had no idea how. Annie was afraid none of them would play with her.

Then she got a brainwave. What if she made another tall tale up? That might interest them.

“Girls, can I join you?” she asked them. “I know a thing or two about actresses because my Mummy is an actress!”

That instantly made all eyes turn to her.

“Really?” Emily asked.

“Of course. She often takes me along when she performs. I get a front row seat,” Annie quipped.

All the girls immediately sat on the floor around her: “You have to tell us about it!”

So, Annie talked and exaggerated, thinking it was a game. After all, she was always making things up a bit, so what did it matter? But the others were watching her with wide eyes.

The next day, when she came to school, the other girls at once asked her to join them. Annie tried to talk about something else, but they only wanted to talk about what it was like to have a famous actress for a mother.

You see, Annie had made up the story about her mother’s “acting career” to get attention, and she indeed did. But her friends now wanted more and more details.

What to do now? She couldn’t say that she had fibbed. So, Annie began elaborating…