
As a kid the world seems like a big, bright place: full of dreams and life and cool things ahead of you. And as a kid it always feels like you're waiting around for life as an adult to really begin.
Out there in the unknowns of the world, though, lie some fears that as a kid you can't rationalize and you can't wrap your mind around. For the most part, kids are at the mercy of their fears because they have very concrete reasons for scaring that child. And as kids grow older, they may outgrow these fears, but that little seed of trepidation will always remain.
"What was your biggest fear as a child?"
Here were some of those answers.
Somehow None Of Us Got Raptured
"I was 12 around the time that the Maya calendar and the end of the world was a thing."
"At that age, I was so easily influenced plus I was just getting conscious about life and death and all that, that all the hype around 2012 actually scared the hell out of me."-JFreeze20
The Sleep Angles
"It's a toss-up."
"That the toilet wouldn't stop flushing, the bathroom would fill with water and I'd drown."
"That tigers would escape from the zoo and get into my bedroom, and the last thing I'd see is its mouth closing on my head. I still sleep facing the wall, even now, so I don't have to see it."-Extreme-Database-695
Rage
"I have PTSD from my mom's unexpected anger. I learned at a young age that you can't deal with someone is enraged. My mom could go from happy to raving lunatic in less than a minute."
"I then went into an abusive marriage around the time that the term 'battered women' came about. I was stoic while the abuse was going on, but all it takes is for someone to lose their temper in front of me to get me to cower into a corner or find some way to make myself as small as possible."
"I'm 61 years old, and I still feel like a little kid when it comes to anger. Before you suggest therapy, I've been there and done it for many years of my life. I guess some things just don't go away."-LaylaDusty
These things also have the potential to majorly impact your life as a kid.
Pests And Their Legs
"After my grandfather died, my mother and I flew down to help clean out his house."
"He was a hoarder who lived in Texas, so the building was rather crawling with 'wildlife.' But it wasn't the mummified mouse behind the furniture or the snake skin in the living room that really freaked me out. It was the freaking cockroaches!"
"As my mother explained it, grandad put roach-poison out around the edges of the property, which the roaches ate before coming into the house."
"Problem was, the poison made the roaches crazy before it killed them, so instead of running and hiding from light and people, they'd fly right at me!"
"In the week or two that I spent helping clean that house, so many roaches tried to use my nose as a landing strip that I developed something of a phobia about them."-OpheliaRainGalaxy
When Your Imagination Is Dark
"Drowned bodies."
"Lived by a lake and for some reason I expected a murky, bloated dead body to just bob up. Had nightmares about it and no idea where it came from. Must have stopped by when my parents watched a murder mystery or something."
"Also bears. That one makes more sense as my dad showed me documentaries about people getting mauled."-ipakookapi
Watched 'The Ring' Too Much
"Man I pushed a tv out of my room because I thought something was going to jump out of it and kill me! Also all the toys with eyes had to be put away as well as pictures on the wall."
"I was also terrified I would die if a spider bite. And I had OCD to the point I would have to do a certain ritual or my family would die. I was pretty messed up I'm now a teenager and traded ocd for anxiety and an eating disorder."-Loganaguineapig
Where Does It Flush To?
"Flushing the toilet. When i was young we watched a kid series called 'ik mik loreland' in school. It was meant to teach children how to write, but all it did was bring me nightmares."
"There was one scene where the main villain who was f*cking terrifying for Kids aged 6 btw, Come out of a the sewage system or something. This led to every time i wanted to flush the toilet i sprinted out of the bathroom."-taqotta
Do you remember the things you were inconsolably terrified of, as a child?
Clod Hoppers
"There was an episode of Full House where everyone was making fun of Michelle because her feet got big. She has a dream where her feet grew to the size of the house, woke up from that dream, then discovered her feet were still oversized, then woke up from that dream."
"Let me tell you 5 year old me was MORTIFIED. I would not be able to fall asleep for the life of me. I would get up to tell my mom I could not sleep, but I had a full length mirror in my room, and would refuse to look in it."
"I did not look at my feet for months. It was a serious issue. Luckily my feet are normal sized, but when I rewatch the episode I still remember the fear instilled in me."-Thecave2121
Chains And Whips Excite Me
"Was quite religious for some years, and greatly feared somehow condemning my soul to Hell."
"Was also a huge horror fan, which troubled me because I worried various horror novels/films were sinful, but really couldn't help myself reading/watching them."
"Matters peaked when I got the old VHS of Hellraiser, with the tagline 'It will tear your soul apart.' Was genuinely afraid this might happen if I watched it, but I really wanted to watch it so I did."
"Not religious any more, think my soul was probably ok, and it was the beginning of my interest in BDSM."-Blue_Tomb
Aquarius
"When I was six I went to the County Fair and a band was doing a cover of the old song 'The Age of Aquarius.'"
"They performed behind this screen that caused an aura to form around the band as they moved, and somehow I mistook the lyrics to the song as 'The Angel of Aquarius' and thought it was about some avenging malevolent being that was going to wipe out life on Earth to bring in a new age of man."
"There was a time when my kindergarten teacher told the class that an asteroid was going to hit the Earth, and I was depressed for days because I thought it was a planet killer."
"So I guess I had a little pattern of thinking the Earth would be destroyed. Sadly now I see how foolish my childish imaginings were now as an adult, but ironically am seeing the Earth actually getting destroyed in the present"-dudeARama2
Do you remember the things that used to keep you up at night when you were a kid? The scary stories you and your friends used to tell each other at sleepovers? Urban legends too scary to try?
As an adult, you probably feel a little silly. But those fears were there for a reason. And chances are, a little piece of them still linger within you.
Banning and censorship is nothing new in America.
Or, in the world at large really.
It all starts on a small scale.
They start stripping us of things at school and work.
You know, all for the greater good.
Redditor t0rnado_thegamerwanted to discuss the items that have been taken out of circulation for ridiculous reasons. They asked:
"What's the stupidest thing your school/work banned?"
I feel the banning has only just begun. But let's see what we've already lost.
Fallen
"We weren't allowed to build a snowman because it 'might fall on you.' They suggested we build a 'snow forest' instead - snowballs on the ground > 1 meter apart. Nobody built snow forests."
AntiparticleCollider
Signs
"6th graders and only 6th graders weren't allowed to draw outside of assigned art projects. I heard any number of reasons for the ban--'gang signs,' vandalism, distraction--but never got one for why the ban didn't apply to 5th or 7th graders. My only guess is that one of the 6th grade teachers just really hated seeing children's artwork."
hypo-osmotic
Silence
"My primary school (age 5 to 11) in the UK banned talking during lunch. Every single child had to eat lunch in a big room, in absolute silence. No talking to friends or socialising allowed. It was pretty insane now I think about it."
OneFreamon
"I was gonna comment this too. My school banned talking at lunch if it got too loud. We had a cup at each table the teachers would make us turn them over and stop talking frequently each lunch."
"The theory was that someone would choke and no one would hear them if it was loud. Incidentally, the only time somebody choked was during a period of quiet and nobody knew because YOU CAN’T TALK WHILE CHOKING!! The person was fine though."
AerobaticDiamond
The Rule Book
"The lack of shoes, as in there is an specific rule against it detailing what should and should not be worn in your feet, all this because a friend of mine read the Rule book and it only said that 'Students must always come wearing appropriate pants and shirts that do not break the etiquette code.' He went to school with shoes and took them off at the entrance for a semester just to piss off the principal. I love that guy."
Inkydex
Code
"Anything with a snowman on it. Apparently that was code for cocaine."
Cad-Banes
Wow, Snowmen really get a bad rap out in these streets.
Ouch
"We weren't allowed to say anything was easy because it might hurt the feelings of kids who didn't think that thing was easy."
tgrizzle69
Stay Dry
"Back in my high school, they banned water bottles unless they were clear bc people had been sneaking alcohol into school, but like clear alcoholic drinks are a thing?? so it basically did nothing."
randibird
"Our school did that, too, after previously banning water bottles altogether. One of my teachers then got really bent out of shape about so many people using disposable plastic bottles but the school was really strict about how clear your water bottle had to be and not everyone had a qualifying reusable bottle on hand so what did she expect?"
hypo-osmotic
in the ye' olden days...
"Bottle flipping when that was a trend in the ye' olden days long since forgotten. I don’t know why, and it’s not like they did a good job telling us about the ban so my first and only detention I’ve ever gotten was from flipping a stupid water bottle. That and the 'fight club' that formed in PE but that’s a different story."
Labrat_The_Man
Lies
"Probably Yugioh cards.They were banned because a group of moms made up a rumor that in another unspecified country a kid had died while holding a fiend-type monster, so clearly they were satanic. Years later I learned that one of those moms was my friend's mom and she just didn't want to buy the cards for her son."
GladiusNocturno
Ho Ho Ho
"Saying Christmas. Had to be called 'the current religious festival.' And no decorations were allowed."
PloppyTheSpaceship
Why are we banning the wrong things? This is nonsense.
People say parenting is one of the most rewarding things in life. That all of the lack of sleep, constant crying, and stress is worth it when you see your baby smile. And all of that is true, for the most part.
However, being a parent is hard, and it's not always easy to give that unconditional love. Sometimes, you do your best for your kids and they still turn out to be people you can't really reconcile with.
You'll always love your kids, but sometimes it's near impossible to like them.
Redditor eyriesistable asked:
"At what point did you realize you don’t like your own kid?"
Some Reddit Users Talked About Momentary Dislike
These are parents of young, cute toddlers and are mostly joking about disliking their kid.
Laughing At Pain
"My 2 year old just yanked my hair and laughed when I said 'ouch!'. I still love him but he's a little f*cker sometimes."
– Beansinside
The Classic Toddler Offense
"My two year old got sent home from daycare today because he bit three different kids, unprovoked, before noon."
– Brandonjoe
My Pet!
"He stole my cat."
"Only 18 months old the little prick and he's always had a fascination with animals, any time he sees one he points, starts walking towards it going "aaaaaaaww""
"Anyway, me and my cat used to be best buddies but currently my cat is sat in his lap whilst he's stroking him going "aaaaaaaww""
"And it's the same every day"
– IIPESTILENCEII
A Drinking Problem
"I walked in to her room and caught my kid sitting on her bed drinking a Pepsi. She has always known we are a Faygo household. I can look past some things but when you disrespect me in my own house I just don’t know how you get past something like that."
– thebreon
Waiting To Get Her Back
"Every time the lil' f*cker wakes us up before 5 am. Can't wait untill her teenage years, I will be up at dawn every day asking why she isn't getting out of bed and make some of her day instead. Revenge is only 10 years away."
– Redlax
Others Talked About Issues That May Never Be Resolved
These are parents who don't like their kids' personalities and don't see anything ever changing.
A Missing Bond
"For real, I used to have an issue for several years with my three daughters. I didn't feel the parental love that one would expect. I would still protect them from harm and all that but I did not have the emotional connection I thought I would with my kids. I spoke out of concern with my wife about it several times and she suspects that it was how I was raised by an abusive father figure. Nowadays the love is there but I feel that I missed out on too many things when they were growing up. I did not bond when I was supposed to I guess. I never really went out of my way to hold them when they were little. I just pray that I hid that fact well enough from them that they don't find out. I don't want them to think I don't care..."
– BentheWarlock
Some Of Them Want To Use You
"When they became a narcissistic adult-trash talking everyone for attention, me included. They are a user (of people) like I’ve never seen before. I still love them, but do not like them."
– 6moinaleakyboat
0 for 3
"My grandmother had 3 kids and doesn't like any of them. Loves all three but doesn't like them. The first is just an a-hole who used her for money and her house like a hotel. Second... they just don't click, total opposites. Third is a needy lil mooch/hoarder who throws tantrums over stuff like the frosting color on Easter cookies because "that's not how daddy did it when I was little""
– allhailqueenspinoodi
He Is Mean
"He started hating on me from an early age. He would literally give me the cold shoulder - monosyllabic responses to me while not looking up from his games, then become open and chatty when anyone else entered the room. I ate it for years - he's just a kid, right?"
"I ended up leaving his dad. He blamed me for everything and called the cops on me after yelling at me over the phone."
"I talked to his brother after the cops left. He was so frustrated on my behalf and only then told me all the low-key things younger brother had done under the radar; he was more mean than I realized; I thought it was only directed at me. My older son was sympathetic and made me feel better. He said his younger brother had a lot of issues."
"I really don't give my younger son an option to call the cops on me again."
– IntheCompanyofOgres
Lie, Lie, Lie
"I think it's kinda sad how I know that my stepfather (who had his own daughter) wished I was his kid instead of her. To be fair, the girl kept making stories up about what we did to her and she was alienating him from the rest of his family. I think I can even pinpoint the day he realised that this wasn't miscommunication but rather her just lying about everything."
"She ran away from home and after years of fighting it was finally calm. And honestly, screw her, she didn't have to lie to anyone about us, she didn't have to steal from me or my mum to the point that a gift for my birthday was a lock on my door."
"I hope she doesn't screw over whoever is taking care of her now but I doubt it."
– Aggressive_Tear_769
These are some intense stories! Parenting is hard, and the truth is, when it's good, it's good, but when it's bad, it's really bad.
Have you ever had someone try to comfort you, but ended up feeling worse after what you just heard?
It happens more frequently than people would like, when what were meant to be words of comfort and encouragement end up having the exact opposite effect.
Indeed, sometimes we might be better off, or able to sleep somewhat easier had we not been told a certain statistic or recent study, which paints an optimistic light, but is bad news nonetheless.
Redditor Soupmandog589 was curious to learn what optimistic facts aren't quite as comforting as they seem, leading them to ask:
"What’s a fact that sounds comforting but is actually highly disturbing?"
I'd rather not crash at all.
"You’re statistically more likely to die in a car crash on the way to the airport than you are in a plane crash."- 593shaun
Cold comfort at its finest.
"You did your best."- a_fortunate_accident
The possibilities are endless...
"You never truly know what anyone really thinks about you.'
"I mean this like super literally."
"Like you never know if your spouse is planning on killing you, you never know if a stranger is keeping an eye on you thinking about assaulting you.'
"Several possibilities that you could never know."- bluburry420
"There are hundreds if not thousands of versions of you in the minds of other people."
"Depending on how many people you have met in your life."- He-Who-Laughs-Last
I hope that day is a long time coming...
"One day you'll never feel pain again."- Antdawg2400·
Ignorance is bliss... or is it?
'The most peaceful way to die is in your sleep, but you’ll go to sleep not knowing you’ll never see anything ever again."- Hkro-2
We won't live to see it... but others will...
"There will be a point in time where humans go extinct."
"We wont experience it but imagine our future generations will see the 'end of the world'.
"You saw... nothing."- SunTzy69
The truth is out there... maybe...
"Either alien life exists, or we are totally alone in the universe."- ALA02
Don't get too excited
"You're really really sick, you have no energy, no appetite, and just the will to do nothing at all."
"Let’s say this is your grandpa in this situation."
"All the sudden grandpa calls you and says he wants to eat so much that it hurts and he wants to go do some fun projects, this sudden burst of energy kinda thing."
"Well you drive to the hospital to find that your grandpa has just died minutes after he called you."
"The nurse will then explain to you that this is very common when people are dying to just have a sudden burst of energy."- ReaperGrin
Either way, we're screwed
"While we're losing a lot of forests in the tropics due to climate change, we're actually gaining a lot of forest in the northern latitudes, and into formerly grassland areas as more available CO2 allows them to grow in more arid regions."
"And everyone loves trees, right?"
"The problem is the climate crisis is also a biodiversity crisis, and habitat loss, like grasslands or tundra becoming forest, is arguably even harder on species than changes in weather patterns."- RIPEOTCDXVI
Kind as it is to offer comfort to those who need it, it is also wise to think very carefully when choosing your words.
After all, as the saying goes "when you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all."
I've watched people devour things I couldn't fathom swallowing.
Like... "Why are you doing that to your body?"
I love food as much as the next person, but somethings really should just stay on the vine.
So many of the current most popular foods make no sense to me.
Avocado. Just... why? It's green slime.
To each their own.
Redditormintylye wanted to discuss personal issues with the menu. They asked:
"What food does everyone love to eat, but you don't?"
I am very picky eater. I try not to be, but I can't help it. My list long.
Oink
"Ham it's so gross I like other meats but ham is just so disgusting."
AHHHyhu78uj
Fresh Roast
"Not a food, but coffee. The entire planet seems to start their day with a cup and I can’t get the taste for it."
boegan
"I actually LOVE the taste of coffee but I rarely drink it. I just try to wake up with a glass of water instead of the caffeine."
"I feel like the point of coffee is to wake you up, so it never made sense to me to drink decaf (even though I like the taste), so I just decide not to drink it. I do have a coffee pot and there are times where I’m feeling frisky, but I’m glad that it’s an addiction that I haven’t gotten into."
JSto19
Hell NO!
"Steak. Not red meat, just a fat steak. Gristle, fat, texture, and childhood trauma play a key role in why I dislike steak. Trust me, I've had numerous people - including my previous roommate who is a professional chef - try to get me to like it. It ain't happening. I do love a good burger though."
Killarogue
Separate
"Chocolate ice cream I love them separately though."
SuvenPan
"Yes! A lot of chocolate flavored stuff I'd say is more 'cocao' flavored if that makes sense, same with chocolate milk, chocolate pudding, etc."
motion_bum
"I'm the same. I like chocolate, but majority of chocolate flavoured things taste very different and are not enjoyable for me."
Amber-Dragon
bad sweets...
"Marshmallow peeps."
rmdelecuona
"They are overwhelmingly sweet. But I have childhood nostalgia associated with them so I still eat them."
SpaceBass18
Those Peeps are the work of Satan. I said what I said.
I'm ill...
"Mayo and ranch, but mostly mayo. The sight of a glob of thick ranch or mayo makes my stomach uneasy."
Helicoppter
Clearly the best...
"Sweet potato pie. I can’t stand sweet potatoes but to put it in a pie… that’s just too much."
WonderlissBliss
"Dog it tastes nothing like actual sweet potatoes. Sweet potato pie is like candy trust me. My mom used to make it for me when I was little."
"But she called it 'butterscotch pie' to trick me into eating it as she knew I'd want nothing to do with it if I found out it contained sweet potatoes. Clearly the best pie. I assume you haven't ever tried it. Big mistake. It's like if someone took a pumpkin pie and was like, 'what if I increase all of its stats by ten points'. Perfect pie."
fly_it_sigh_it
fresh off the boat...
"About the only seafood I'll eat is breaded fish sticks. Which has about as much in common with seafood as Taco Bell does with Mexican food. None at all. The smell, texture and taste of the rest of the seafood world is just nauseating to me. Which some people can't seem to grasp as I live less than a 10 minute drive to the fishing docks and get whatever I want fresh off the boat."
bbpr120
In your mouth...
"Caviar tried it once like pouring salt shaker in your mouth. Venison gamey Beef."
MissGoodbean
"Then you haven't had good caviar. I had it in Moscow and it was super. I don't like sushi or a lot of seafood."
highstreethellcat
Gross Greens
"Celery. What the f**k, people. Not good."
velthrar
"Crunchy water!"
Cat385CL
I actually love celery. But I'm weird.