The mind of a child can provide surprisingly sharp insight and wisdom at the most surprising times. Other times, kids can be really dumb.
That's not to say it's only the current generation. I'm sure you can remember some odd idea you believed as a child, which brings us to the question KE SHARP (@danielmarven on Twitter) posed for the internet.
What is the dumbest thing you believed as a child..?— KE SHARP (@KE SHARP) 1552104488.0
"What is the dumbest thing you believed as a child..?"
It's such a simple question, yet surprising in the diverse experiences. This was somewhat similar to the #DumbThingsIBelieved hashtag that became popular last August asked, but brought some different answers.
To start, you can imagine why a child might believe these.
@danielmarven News presenters read everything from their head cram everything.— Anthony Waweru (@Anthony Waweru) 1552124390.0
The picture of Earth where you can only see half of it illuminated was because humanity had already used up the oth… https://t.co/paDGrlDjxb— Soren Bowie (@Soren Bowie) 1552193604.0
that when a couple kiss while laying in bed the woman will pregnant https://t.co/dw2L8GGRqQ— ✨ (@✨) 1552237390.0
It's not just Twitter asking this question. About a month before the hashtag became popular, a Reddit user posted on r/AskReddit asking the same question.
It's easy to see why the question is so popular. As kids we're often told incorrect things, and we take the word of authority at face value. This can lead to us believing lies, whether intentionally or not.
Alternatively, we believe things so outlandish they can only come from a child's mind.
@danielmarven Kids are never born they fall from an airplane— TDK_Mdlalose (@TDK_Mdlalose) 1552111446.0
I used to be horrified of cacti because I thought if you got poked you’d become a cactus person https://t.co/gNXmtxbx0P— Cristina Vee @ GOTTA GO FAST (@Cristina Vee @ GOTTA GO FAST) 1552235243.0
a tried ta jump into the tv ta meet Scooby doo https://t.co/GHjK1Xc4UL— mick (@mick) 1552260744.0
My dad told me to take my socks off when I go to sleep because my feet have to breath too, and I still think he’s r… https://t.co/BvsFT3W6hJ— Jack Lovett (@Jack Lovett) 1552208576.0
There are some very universal beliefs, like swallowing seeds.
I honestly even now still believe that if you eat seeds a tree will grow inside you 😭 https://t.co/kZhqtgTg0a— Almeda (@Almeda) 1552122047.0
If I swallowed a certain seed the tree that becomes of that seed would grow inside of me & come out my mouth https://t.co/r93tsrUL3s— 👩🏻🦱 (@👩🏻🦱) 1552141104.0
And of course, some kids think being an adult is more glamorous than it really is.
Being an adult was fun. https://t.co/2Owbnb8bXJ— Soup (@Soup) 1552104570.0
I was gonna be smarter as I got older💀 https://t.co/BEVacS54UO— Besh🇳🇵 (@Besh🇳🇵) 1552260898.0
Adults https://t.co/AYjaEm64SO— Rhod (@Rhod) 1552260860.0
These beliefs and fake facts we had as kids were signs of naïveté and may make you cringe to think back on them. But they're also part of learning and growing up. They teach us to sift fact from fiction and give us a giggle. And hopefully, they show us how far we've come.