12 People Who Realized Their “Perfect Childhood” Was a Big Lie

When we are kids, everything seems dreamy, innocent, and pure because of our untainted hearts. However, as we grow older and revisit our memories, we might begin to notice details and clues that reveal much more serious truths about our parents and families. The narratives we’re sharing today highlight these realizations. The people who experienced them believe that understanding our past helps us find the strength to create a brighter future.

• When I was 7, Mom said she won a lifetime supply of “dance show” tickets. She had stacks and always made me hand them to a big bald man at the entrance, saying it was good practice. The place was dark with red couches, but oddly, I have no memories of the shows. I’d pass out at the start and wake up in the morning.
  20 years later, I had a sudden flashback and realized those weren’t tickets—Mom was a theater dancer. She had no one to watch me, so she brought me to work every night. She made up a cute story to distract me since it was way past my bedtime. My respect for her has only grown since this realization. Now that I’m a mom, I can only imagine how hard it was for her to raise me alone without help or decent income.

• When it was my weekend with my dad, I would be dropped off at people’s houses. I thought it was fun because everything was so different, and I got to meet new people. As I got older, I realized it was neglect—he was just palming me off while he went elsewhere. © daibz / Reddit

• One of my earliest memories is standing in line with my grandpa to buy bread. I loved it because I was his favorite, and he would buy me a stick of gum when they had it and let me carry the bread “vouchers.”
  Once, while in college, I complained to my mom about not having any baby pictures. She laughed and said, “I was trying to keep you alive, not worry about pictures. Sometimes I wouldn’t eat so you could.” © Unknown author / Reddit

• My parents would have my brother, my sister, and me hide in various places around the house, making it seem like a game of hide and seek. I didn’t realize until later that they were actually hiding us from the police, so if there was a raid, we wouldn’t be taken into foster custody. © YerlerDermernd / Reddit

• When I was a kid, we (mom, sister, and I) used to have “candle nights,” where we’d light candles all over the house and sit under the dining room table to talk and tell stories. My sister and I loved those nights! It wasn’t until I was older that I realized it was because the lights would go out due to my mom not being able to afford the electricity. Despite the financial struggles, she worked so hard and still made our childhood wonderful. © damorgster / Reddit

• My mom was always in different cities for work, taking any job she could find, and would leave me to live with my grandmother. It was perfectly normal for me to see her with a new baby every time we reunited, like, “Oh! A new sibling!” My grandmother passed away without meeting the last two because my mother was too embarrassed to tell her. We are five kids, and my mom never sent my grandmother any money from those jobs. © Unknown author / Reddit

• When I was in 7th grade, I had some extra money and excitedly told my friend that I was going to buy 3 honeybuns. He made it very clear that he thought that was gross. I was flabbergasted and thought, “Uh, they taste great—what are you talking about?”
  It was only later that I realized I had no concept of healthy eating or junk food. No one had ever mentioned it to me before. © NickDoane / Reddit

• My mom would take my brother and me to hotels near our house for vacations. I didn’t realize at the time that it was her way of escaping from my dad because she had been kicked out. © ImNiceGuySmile / Reddit
  

• As a kid, I always got to eat whatever I wanted for dinner until about fourth grade, when my mom and I moved in with her boyfriend. It wasn’t until my sophomore year of college that I realized it was because my mother had a severe aversion to food. It didn’t matter what was for dinner to her because she wasn’t going to eat it. © emzy996 / Reddit

• When I was a kid, I thought it was normal to be home alone. My mother worked a lot to support us, so by the time I was 6, I was on my own most of the day. I watched cartoons, did my homework, and made myself a sandwich for dinner almost every night. My mom would come home around 9 to kiss my forehead while I was “asleep,” but she knew I stayed up for her. © CloutNotIncluded / Reddit

• When I was about six, my dad was asleep on the couch, and we tried to pull the prank of putting shaving cream in his hand and tickling his nose. When that didn’t work, we ended up decorating him with the shaving cream instead. We brought over the neighbor kid, and my mom recorded the whole thing—it was a lot of fun. Years later, I found out it was a bit of revenge on my mom’s part because she was fed up with him coming home and passing out on the couch. © britaww / Reddit
  

• I have a lot of good memories from when I was 6-12 of helping my mom with my younger sisters. It turns out I missed out on a typical childhood and that it isn’t normal to essentially be a second parent to your siblings. I thought it was normal to come home from school, start supper, and watch my sisters for an hour or so.
  I later realized that most people didn’t have that responsibility until their teenage years. Needless to say, it was a tough transition when my mom remarried and my stepdad took over the second parent role. © polkadotprincess2317 / Reddit

Kids are innocent but also mischievous. Sometimes, the things they say can lead to incredibly embarrassing moments for their parents, just like you’re about to discover here.