But why, Pinocchio?

Today, let us analyse the cause of a serious pandemic
Let's delve into the psychology of it and get the specifics
Among all the classifications of lies, I've picked the habitual
They practise it routinely as an obligation, almost as if spiritual
And the irony of it all; they're constantly on the lookout
They're usually the ones adept at calling it out
It takes one to recognize another
SOPs, workflows, dialogues, motives may sound familiar
A habitual liar is never at peace throughout
They're always dodging imaginary daggers of doubts
Of course, much of their cynicism may be necessary
It saves them a lot of trouble; it could be a good accessory

But for now, let's consider the why
Why is it that people lie?
In little children, I believe it's usually because of fear
Especially if consequences of revelation are anticiptedly severe
I believe through awareness of unconditional love and acceptance
Parents and authority figures can resolve and contain such a situation
I'm not suggesting evading the concept of punishment
But, ensure your reaction is a proportional accompaniment

Many lie for instant gratification
Or to immediately contain a situation
These have knowledge of the wrong
And yet, they prefer to sing their song
But these lies are usually not well-planned
And I believe at some point, it will get out-of-hand
They'll keep digging their own grave until it's so deep
And when the tide increases water begins to flood and seep

And then, there are those white lies
I believe, within this category, there are sub-types
It's sometimes done to mitigate or avoid conflict
Like a child with fear, but an adult in an atmosphere that restricts
It could very well be a benevolent act to protect someone else
Like in the case of an undercover cop, a sky marshall or military personnel

People also lie to preserve their fantasy
It's usually to themselves first, because they despise reality
Imagine telling a child Santa Claus is not real
Now picture an adult brought up with religious indoctrination
Sometimes, the truth is just not pleasant enough
And to make sense of inexplicable things, people make up stuff
Many of them believe it is for the greater good
And with a motive like that, it's like knocking on hardwood
Much of this stems from innocent wishful thinking
Intentions may be good, but the concept of freedom must be understood

Sometimes in relationships people lie to protect another's feelings
Or to extend the relationship itself instead of addressing things that need dealing
It may be done out of fear of losing a partner
If the truth were revealed or they had to discover
Of  course most lies stem from fear of some loss
Through habit, past experiences, cognitive abilities, we always weigh the cost
It may be on a very subconscious level
But at the back of our minds, we're at wrestle

Quite often, people do it to preserve their image
Protecting self-imposed halos in itself is a sacrilege
Much of these are rooted in deep-seated insecurities
But after a while, the masks come off with their constant obscurities
You'd be surprised to know how many care to impress
Reputation is the focus, but seldom care to regress
Sometimes, they genuinely don't want to disappoint someone
Like a pious mother, a faithful partner, or a devout nun

And back to what I began with
Let's address that rotten pit
For some, it's just a personality trait
Which took years and decades to escalate
They were probably never corrected in their prime
And escaped learning their lesson all the time
When a little goes undetected
There's a gradual buildup that gets perfected
Behavioural disorders such as compulsive lying
May not even have motive, which makes it so mystifying
In fact, spurting a lie at times could be severely detrimental 
And the truth may actually be more dignified, justifiable, and favourable
But, practice makes perfect
And, a habit is a habit

Are you acquainted with the Pinocchio syndrome?
One in forty-three will hiccup while narrating colossal lies
When their conscience pricks them and they're unable to justify
Most people, well, almost everyone has a tell
But, you need to know the person very well
And of course, one must possess exemplary observation skills
Discard whatever blinders - emotional, prejudice, favouritism; just stand still
Since childhood mom always reiterated, 'no such thing as the perfect crime'
Many times she ignored my circus, but hinted with these words all the time

Sure, there are a few ways to get past a lie detector
You'll have to actually believe the lie, but how to induce such a vector?
Well, I can think of two ways that could be accomplished
If you keep repeating the lie, over a period of time, your mind will no longer be in conflict
You'll subconsciously create an alternate reality
And even memories and details will all be imaginary

I think it's easier to get there when you begin with a partial truth
That's easier for any conscience to accept than bitter vermouth
But the problem here is eventually
You'll be fooling your own memory
And by choice of habit, you may become a pathological liar
And your own mind will play games with things that may seem familiar
It's a miserable state of being when you can't even trust yourself
Major therapy and counselling will be needed to climb out of that well

Many of us rationalize and get out on a technicality
Some people are guilty by exclusion or through obscurity
Some people present it on a twisted wordy platter
You've chosen the obvious inference, so to their conscience, it won't matter
There would have been an alternate way
To interpret the truth within what they did say
These are people with exceptional vocabulary
So, pay attention to their choice of words carefully
They'll always leave ample of ambiguity along with an exit strategy
For any sentence to have multiple interpretations and stories

Just don't wait for it to all snowball
Don't lie so much that so horribly you'll fall
Because once you're there
Even if you speak the truth, you won't be treated fair
Once you lose credibility
Rebuilding character requires opportunity

Most of the lies we believe are due to filters
They're most likely from people we trust with blinders
It's not that your'e devoid of rationale and comprehension
But your trust and emotion distrubs the presentation
They may keep telling you the sun is green
And although all your life you've seen...
a yellow sun, though the whole world displays unto you
You'll believe the sun is pink, green, or multi-coloured, that too

I really relish observing human behaviour
Disecting an aftermath and analyzing, I like to savour
I'm neither a clinical psychologist nor a counsellor
If you have theories or inputs, I'd really like to hear
I write a lot of poems regarding such controversial topics; I'm open to correction
They're not absolute or documented principles; I'd be happy to engage in a discussion

- RUELHA
www.ruelha.com
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