Is it ever okay to keep a secret from your parents?
It's been said that what people don't know won't hurt them, and that can certainly depend on the circumstances. But some secrets aren't all sad, dark, and depressing. Some are quite wholesome, believe it or not!
And sometimes your parent might be in on the secret. That's right. One parent.
People were keen to share their experiences after Redditor TheCripdalorian asked the online community,
"What’s one secret you and a parent have kept from the other parental figure?"
"He fought back one day..."
"When I was 10, my older brother (12) was bullied in middle school because we were poor and wore Payless our entire lives. He fought back one day and was suspended from school. When my mom asked what happened, he didn't want to hurt her feelings so he lied."
"I told her what happened and she started to cry. The next day she took us to a shoe store and bought all three boys Nikes, which were very expensive (think Ken Griffeys). She made us promise to not tell our dad and if he asked, they were super cheap on sale."
"She bought us Nikes two times a school year even though they were way out of our budget because she didn't want us to feel s****y at school. I love you, Mom."
tkm0ney
It's awful that we live in a world where people get judged for not wearing clothing that is fancy enough.
"The day that my mom left..."
"My stepdad and mom broke up. The day that my mom left, taking me with her, I went back into the house to say goodbye. I got along well with him, my mom is a bit crazy."
"I was young, middle school age. He was devastated and broke down (a first) crying. He told me that he had never told anyone this but the reason he had issues getting along with my mom was because he was assaulted as a child, and he was sorry. He made me promise not to tell her or anyone."
"I never did. I always wondered if I should tell her but keeping his secret was the only thing I could do for him and I still cared for him a lot so I never told anyone. I wouldn't even post it here but sadly he passed away some years ago now."
"It was really sad, he was a nice guy. But it never would have worked anyway with my mom."
sarradarling
You're a good person, and it probably meant the world to him.
"My Mom worked days..."
"My Mom worked days, and my Dad was on midnight shift. So meals were my Dad's responsibility that week."
"One day, instead of cooking dinner, he took me to a funeral of an old teacher of his that had passed away...so that I could eat those little sandwiches, cheese and desserts."
mollymuppet78
This makes me think of all the times we went to Costco for free samples... though nowhere near as morbid.
"My mom slipped me the money..."
"I rented Mike Tyson's Punch Out when I was in 7th grade and kept it out until I owed $47. My mom slipped me the money to pay it off so my dad wouldn't go crazy about the money, which was a LOT of money for us back then. If he'd found out, he would have prohibited me from renting games for a while."
"I don't think he knows about it even now."
This is sweet and wholesome but we bet you remembered to return games after that!
"My dad and I would wrestle..."
"My dad and I would wrestle for fun. He would pretend to let me win, then he would get sudden strength and throw me into the couch. Well on this particular day, he mistimed his throw and yeeted me into the end table. I was fine….but the lamp on the table was not. We cleaned it up and went to the antique store to buy a really similar lamp. Mom never figured it out."
dbar58
These Actors Were Perfectly Cast In Their Roles | George Takei’s Oh Myyy
Sometimes an actor comes along that is able to reach the audience on a deeper level. The actor that immediately comes to mind is Robin Williams. Although it ...My favorite part of this story is that it's a really similar lamp!
"First time I got drunk..."
"First time I got drunk at a party. I was hammered and was scared to take a cab. Then I remembered my mom telling me I could always call her for help and she’d be there with no consequences."
"I called her and she picked me up. All she did was make sure I was safe and had enough water to not get as bad a hangover as I was going to. No blaming me for waking her up at 3 am, no chiding just telling me she was proud of me for calling her for help."
"My dad, who’d most likely have a panic attack at the thought of me having been drunk, still thinks I was picked up because I was sleepy instead."
"Thanks mom."
certified-dumbass-TM
Parenting done right – good to hear that you can trust your mother!
"Now that my brothers and I are all adults..."
"Well, my parents divorced when I was quite young, and around age 14 I happened upon a substantial stash of pot in my mom's house. She wasn't angry about it or anything, and I knew she wasn't a stoner or anything, it was just a one-time thing she'd gotten from a friend."
"But as she correctly pointed out, if I ever told my dad he would do everything in his power to get full custody of me, and I wouldn't get to live with her anymore."
"Now that my brothers and I are all adults I can tell that story all I want, but yeah, I kept that secret."
NomenNescio13
Divorces can be very acrimonious. It sounds like you did the right thing here.
"That I'm the one..."
"I’m the one who got those massive dents in the back of the car when I was 17… backing into the OTHER car they owned. It was not a parallel parking hit and run."
Veauros
Yeah... it sounds like it'd be best to keep this one to yourself. What they don't know won't hurt them, right?
"I got lucky..."
"I got lucky and found a Wii for Christmas the year it came out. But it was for me from my parents. Anyways, one day I'm home from school and Dad was home from work. We opened it, played Wii sports all day and put it back before Mom came home."
Infectedrage
This is such a sweet and wholesome memory!
"The gingerbread cookies..."
"The gingerbread cookies on the balcony... Yeah, some of it was eaten by the birds, but not all of it. Sorry mom!"
VattghernCZ
You little rascal! She should have known!
Some of these stories are sweet and others saddening. Regardless, many people have their reasons not to tell their parents things. Mum's the word.
Have some stories of your own? Feel free to tell us about them in the comments section below!
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