Tell the Truth.......and zombies

“The difference between the truth and a lie is that both of them can hurt, but only one will take the time to heal you afterward”

The world is ending. The zombie apocalypse is actually going to take place. I say this because I am not only reading a book about zombies, but I’m loving it! For years, I have dismissed the zombie craze. I found nothing even remotely appealing about the reanimated dead hell bent on nothing but taking a bite out of living flesh. I have refused to watch movies and TV shows, and turned away from any book on the topic. I just did not get the excitement. All of those things remain true, and I think it still fairly unlikely that I will now start devouring zombie stories with the same fervor that they do flesh. But sometimes two completely conflicting truths decide to set up camp together and the person whose brain they’re using as a campsite will just have to deal with it. This happens to me all the time.

The book in question is ‘Feed’ by Mira Grant (aka Seanan McGuire), and it’s the first in her Newsflesh Trilogy. I did not set out to read a book about zombies, rather I wanted to read more by Mira Grant. A few months back, I picked up “Into the Drowning Deep” and it all but turned my world upside down – in a good way. Then I went to Barnes & Noble and saw ‘Feed’ on the shelves, and bought it without even glancing at the description on the cover. I’m about two-thirds of the way through and am completely obsessed. Grant has a way of creating worlds and characters that seem wonderfully possible in the most horrific of ways.

The purpose of this post however is not to wax poetic about my (high) level of excitement over this book. It has to do with the sentence I found buried deep inside it’s pages. It began this post and I’ll type again here:

“The difference between the truth and a lie is that both of them can hurt, but only one will take the time to heal you afterward”.

I wish I could say that I have never uttered or acted out a lie, but that of course would be another lie. When I was young, I didn’t get the damage that lies could cause to others, or myself, and I regrettably acted accordingly. Over the years though I saw, and felt, the pain lies cause. I’ve worked hard to better myself and do my level best to never speak an untruth. While I am not perfect (and never will be) I know I’m improved and will only aspire to continue to.

Still, I know not everyone shares that same goal. Each day I am forced to face the cold reality that some people are deceptive to their very core and, even worse, a few of those actually take pleasure in hurting people with their dishonesties. Sometimes I hear those stories on the news or read them in a book. Other times I experience it first hand in my own life and it hurts like hell every single time.

It is partly because of this and partly due to other life experiences (that I still don’t fully understand) that I’ve come to realize I have some serious trust issues. The older I get, the more I place increasing emphasis on the importance of truth and honesty, but there are very few people I would say have my true trust. I value those select few more than I would their weight in gold. Most people though, I take all they say with a grain of salt knowing there’s likely an ulterior motive beneath each word.

So I have a favor to ask. Be honest. At the very least let people know where they stand. I’m not necessarily recommending total brutal honesty (I'm definitely not advocating for you to cuss your boss out), but don’t pretend to befriend someone only to stab them in the back. Don’t say you’ll do something when you have zero intention of actually doing so. Don’t act like you’re 100% behind a plan or project and then do your level best to undermine and promote it’s failure. Be true to yourself too. Don’t be afraid to embrace your interests and passions and weirdness. Don’t invent a false image for the world to see. It not only hurts you in the long run, it can also create a sense of betrayal in those you’ve lied to once the truth comes out (and it always does). It's hard to do sometimes, and I'll say again that I'm definitely not perfect in this, but try.

There are some individuals I know personally, who lie and cheat and deceive with the best of them. I walk away from every encounter second guessing each word that came out of their mouth, and I hate it.  I would so much rather be around people who I know disagree with me politically, or tell my I’m nuts for liking Harry Potter so much, or who simply say they’re not my biggest fan. Because then I know I can trust them when they do agree with me on other issues.

 Grant’s words are true. Someone walking up to me to say they think I’m stupid or I’m horrible at my job or that I’m a complete utter failure will definitely sting. But at least I know my place in their world, which will allow me to adjust their place in mine and heal.

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p.s. If you like zombies definitely check out ‘Feed’ and if you like mermaids – and think you could handle a little horror entwined with the myth – go get a copy of Into the Drowning Deep. I cannot recommend it enough!

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