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People Share The Most "Dad" Thing They've Ever Done

I'm turning into my father...

People Share The Most "Dad" Thing They've Ever Done
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Being a parent means saying things you'd never thought you would, and a lot of that depends on what you're children are doing. "Don't put clay on your pizza," and, "Stop hitting your sister in the head with an X-Box controller," are probably common phrases in most households.

It's those moments when you've become self-aware of the things you've said or done that are most critical in what kind of mom or dad you're going to be. For some people, it was exactly one moment.


Reddit user, u/TwighRussell, wanted to know specifically about self-aware dads when they asked:

What the most 'dad' thing you have ever done?

40. When You Don't Want To Miss A Thing

When my son was two, we were watching TV at the top of the stairs while he toddled. He walked over to the stair, fell, and started to go end over end down the stairs.

From the couch I leapt and grabbed him by the ankle and saved him from tumbling down stairs.

As I settled my Adrenalin-riddled heart down, I realized I had paused my show before making a leap to save my son.

superjordo

39. When You're Always Ready With A Pep Talk...Even When They're Not Your Kids

I was at a concert in a very small venue.

The opener was playing (Moses Sumney I believe) and I was right at the front. He said something like "I've never played this next song live before, so hopefully I don't f-ck it up", and I immediately replied with "just try your best", right when the whole room went quiet. He then replied back to me with "thanks, dad". Proudest moment of my fatherly career.

Capital_Event

38. When Harmless Pranks Are The Best

My daughter, Jessica, was about 12 or 13. I had left the car in the street for some reason and needed to put it back in the driveway.

So, I grab my keys and head for the door. Jessica says, "Where you going?" I say, "You want to come?" She says, "Yes."

We got out to the car, get buckled in, I pull it in the driveway and get out.

She is almost 40, I don't think she has forgiven me yet.

bigedthebad

37. When You Love Your Kids...Promise

Oh man I've recently realised I'm turning into my father. I have 2 young boys now and I swear in the last 3 years I've aged 20.

Every year when I used to ask my dad what he wanted for his birthday he'd say 'peace and bloody quiet.' Without fail.

Now I truly understand this. That's all I want too. Just please, for the love of god, give me five minutes.

I just want to sit. And stare and things. And say nothing. And not have to tidy, police or answer the same d-mn question about Iron Man or Elephants 14 times in a row.

I love my kids. I promise.

blatcher21

36. When Your Stuff Is The Most Important Thing

When my kids and their friends are playing in the basement I like to yell from the top of the stairs "HAVE FUN, BUT DON'T TOUCH MY STUFF!" For no real reason.

7281771

35. When You Find A Great "Dad-ism"

Yelled at my son that's it's not Christmas when he keeps leaving lights on in every room

fh3131

34. When You Don't Even Have Kids

I bought a new lawn mower on a Friday night, and ended up waking up early Saturday morning eager to use it. But I realized it was still early (before 7am) and didn't want to disturb my neighbors.

So I basically sat around the house for a couple hours twiddling in thumbs excitedly waiting to use my new lawn mower.

I'm 24, unmarried, and have no kids. Is it over guys?

atomiku121

33. When You Feel Good About Lying To Your Kids

Sent my daughter a "New phone, who dis?" when she texted me to pick her up at the Amtrak station.

houseofmercy

32. When The Moshing Is Just Too Close

I was at Riot Fest in Chicago a few years ago. System of A Down was playing. Friends and I purposely stood fairly far back so as to not get involved in all the moshing and thrashing.

A bunch of teenagers about 10 feet in front of me (but about 60 yards from the stage) started trying to form a mosh circle. I yelled at the top of my lungs "NO. YOU STOP THAT RIGHT NOW. IF YOU WANT TO DO THAT SH-T, GO UP TO THE FRONT OF THE STAGE."

All the other people in their 30s around me started clapping and telling them to leave as well.

It was the closest to "get off my lawn" I've ever been

illini02

31. When You Stick To Your Guns

I told my son I was going to take away his birthday if he kept forgetting to brush his teeth before bed when he was 6.

He's 9 now and every birthday I put 6 candles on his cake and we celebrate his 6th birthday, and when people ask how old he is I tell them hes 6.

Unicorncuddletime

30. This One's Rocky

We were in the Smoky mountains and were walking into a brewery. A friend pointed out the help wanted sign on the door.

I asked if I should put in an Appalachian.

morinmitchell

29. Handy

Got all mad at how much desks cost, so loaded the fiance up into the car and drove to the hardware store and steel mill.

The whole way complaining about materials costs and how big furniture was just trying to rip us off. Made my own desks god damn it. That'll show em.

Aquanauticul

28. VROOM

In Bath and Body Works I stroller raced a dad and his toddler with my nephew, we both were making engine and tire squeal noises, and sideswiping into each other like it was an epic nascar race.

We were asked to wait outside, but both kids were having a blast, and we didn't have to stay in that wretched place, so I consider it a win-win.

I'm 26.

Waldemar-Firehammer

27. Costs How Much?

I spend my days off doing yard work and refuse to pay anyone to do projects that I can figure out how to do myself. That's my dad; I have become him.

cinch123

26. Very Dad

I've started taking my rubbish out in my jocks and t shirt.

People don't wanna see my undies, they can just not look.

maxpowerAU

Its hot so I have been just wearing my shorts for months. When the kid is around I keep my underpants on but when she isn't I freeball it. This includes taking out the trash and doing jumprope in the backyard.

babyspacewolf

25. "Don't Swear, Don't Fall"

While carrying the child, stub my toe to a point where I'm not sure if it's broken or bleeding horribly, because I have to first find a safe place to put him down gently/carefully, before I can collapse to the floor and writhe around, in agony.

liquorlanche

24. If It Works...

When my kids talk back to me I ask them if they think they are talking to one of their street friends.

I still don't know what it means and it was said to me all through my childhood.

InfoSecPeezy

God you are the worst.

Theycallmetheherald

To me it sounds like you're trying to be intimidating like hey I'm the Don not some lowly street thug

DeadpoolLuvsDeath

23. Inspiring

Told a joke and kept it going for more than a year.

calkel2

I have one that's been going for probably 6-7 years now. Whenever the dog comes back inside during the summer I make some comment about him being a hotdog.

whattocallmyself

Stay strong brother! Commitment is key!

calkel2

22. Call It Reading

I watch TV with the closed captions on, I am not hearing impaired.

UbaGob

I'm not even 20 and I do this.

Local_Scrub

This is Dad behavior? My fiance speaks English as a second language so we've been putting cc on for 6 years now and I lose my mind when I go to the movies or a friends house and there is no cc.

It also ruins the plot often since I can always read the entire scenes dialogue before it happens. I love it.

mudvayneWTM

21. Ah The Floating Money Pit

As a single mother, I bought a small fishing boat for my 14 year old son to use and together, we learned how to fish.

Stabfacenotback

Two greatest days of a boat-owner: The day you buy your boat, and the day you sell your boat.

Macluawn

Most people don't realize that boat is an acronym. It stands for Break Out Another Thousand.

semicolon7645

20. Star Using Numbers

Keep calling my daughters by each other's name.... they actually made labels for themselves yesterday to help me out.

Wishuponareddit

My sister used to do this with her kids and I thought it was weird. Now I have 3 boys and do it constantly, often using the two wrong names first.

mooncricket18

19. Friend-Scolding

Internet friend sent me a picture of her boobs, I lectured her on the dangers of sending strangers (we had never met IRL) nudes, especially with your face visible in them.

Zerole00

How many points does he need?

She sent him her boobs.

Kid_Monotone

18. It's All The Rage Now

Having a dadbod.

khassius

dadbod

I want to petition to rename the "dadbod" to "fatherfigure."

Original_name18

17. Appropriately Tacky

Wearing a chef's hat while cooking on the grill.

Back2Bach

I do this. Mine say, "May the Fork be with you."

BonzaiBananas

16. Playing Horsey

Crawl on my hand and knees with three kids on my back.

meta_uprising

I think this is what caused my dad's back problems

abe_the_babe_

I think this is what caused my back problems

I've had to ban that game after one started to run and jump on my back.

smittyphi

15. Of Course, This Is Mandatory

Moved into a new apartment with my fiancee recently. We were hanging up pictures, and I did the classic - use the stud finder on myself bit. :)

Outrageous_Claims

My husband's been doing this since we met... 6 years ago

The stud finder has about 50/50 accuracy

ShuuString

14. That's Some Skill

Once I caught puke in my hand and did not loose a drop in the middle of a Red Lobster.

mrgeef

13. Who Wearts Short Shorts?

Actually the moment I felt like my brother was full dad mode (even though he had a kid for a year at that point) was during his daughter's one year birthday party.

I hadn't seen him in a while and I notice his shorts have gotten shorter, and for a guy that used to be so on point fashion wise, just overall everything he's wearing is really... unrefined.

I'm just standing there and I notice him discreetly whip out a small camcorder as the birthday candles are being lit, and squats down to get a good angle.

Mista_Madridista

12. Welcome Home, Dad

Took two tries to get off the couch, grabbed a beer, walked back to the couch and sat down. Scratched my balls. Then neglected my family for 20 years.

Economy_Cactus

Good news is that by the time you get back with your smokes, I'll be able to buy you the next pack!

Dooky710

11. The Last Vestiges Of Smart TV

Might be more of a grandad thing, but I watch Jeopardy every night at 7:30.

ElwoodCash

I complained at work because they would be working me later from now on. They thought I was complaining because I'd just be working late but I was really just upset that I'd have to miss Jeopardy from now on.

C_Bowick

10. Work That Body

In Bath and Body Works I stroller raced a dad and his toddler with my nephew, we both were making engine and tire squeal noises, and sideswiping into each other like it was an epic nNscar race.

We were asked to wait outside, but both kids were having a blast, and we didn't have to stay in that wretched place, so I consider it a win-win.

I'm 26.

Waldemar_Firehammer

9. Such Sacrifice

Just happened last night. Was taking a dump when my wife yelled that our toddler was blowing out of his diaper (for those of you who don't know that term, it means poop was leaking out of his diaper).

I stopped myself mid-shit, shoved a piece of toilet paper over my b-hole to prevent skid marks, and gave my kid a bath, got him in a clean diaper and pajamas, and helped read him a bedtime story before returning to the bathroom to complete my personal previously interrupted foray into defecation.

yesithurt

In my house, bathroom time is a timeout from parenthood. The wife and I have taken progressively longer bathroom breaks over the last few years.

Admin5668

8. Sandy Fun In The Sun

Taking your child to the beach for the first time is the most 'dad' thing a man can possibly do. It requires 60-90 minutes of preparation including assembling supplies and loading the vehicle. (Bonus points if you get up early and drop the car off to get a "good space").

Once you have coordinated the nap schedule and found the window of opportunity you traverse to the beach. Looking at 10-15 minutes of unloading with multiple trips possible.

All of the items brought are intended to stimulate the child and allow the family to get cute pictures. Once the kid gets cranky then its time to repack the stuff and load up the car so the kid can take a nap inside while you have wasted an entire beach day for roughly 25 minutes of sun.

That is when you know a man has crossed the Rubicon and become a dad.

15careCrowBoatfan

7. Oops

Once put my foot in the way to try and stop my two year old daughter running into our dining room table. Ended up kicking her square on the nose.

DrJad

6. Just Skip The Babysitting

Went to Capriottis for lunch. Girl behind the counter is cute as hell...she is super flirty. I go back about a week later, half because she's cute and seems into me.

I order my sandwich and as she's taking my order she caresses my hand and says that I have really nice hands. I'm definitely flattered but also a little taken back because damn! This never happens to me!

While I'm waiting for my order, she writes her number down on a receipt and hands it to me with my sandwich. I waited a couple days and then texted her.

We chatted a bit and then it comes out that she's 17-years-old. I basically scolded her and told her she don't need to be handing men her number like that at 17-years-old.

KMFDM781

5. Bro Dad

Went to a little get together party at a friends house with a few people I knew. I was the first one there so I had to cut some wood and get the fire started all while drinking a cold one.

After that pointed out the motorcycle sitting behind us to my buddy and asked why he hasn't been riding it. He claimed it wasn't running so I took a look at it for sh*ts and giggles.

Smelled gas when he turned it over so I checked the fuel lines and saw one was diconnected. Reconnected tried again but still didn't start but almost. Pushed it down the hill and bump started it and rode it down the street.

I cut the wood, made the fire, drank the beer and fixed the motorcycle. I was dad.

f22raptor272

4. Lounging Like A Man

There's a pic of me reclined on a couch balancing a beer on my gut and gazing into the distance and I've never felt more like a dad than I do when I see that pic. I'm a lady.

NekoGoblikon

3. Male Head Of Household

A buddy of mine was going through some rough times and living on my couch while getting back on his feet. After a few weeks of seeing him play videogames in his underwear I got pissed.

I knew I had to talk with him, but I didn't feel like it was my place or even had the courage to tell him half of the things I wanted to.

SO I figured it would be easier if I was drunk. So I got a six pack of beer. After chugging one I walked into the house, slammed the beer on the coffee table, and calmly said "Turn off the game. We need to talk."

And if that's not dad enough for you here's a list of bullet points we covered in our talk:

  1. Personal responsibility
  2. work ethic
  3. consequences
  4. "I'm telling you this not to get on you, but because I love you and want to see you succeed."
  5. resume writing
  6. I think we talked about credit scores for some reason
  7. preparing for the future

He didn't turn that PS4 on until he got a job a week later; found a second job the next month, and moved into his own 1B1B not too long after. This was a couple years ago and I've moved since. I hope he's doing okay.

codycantdie

2. Approaching Peak Dad Behavior

Socks with sandals.

MrShredder5002

Someone get this man a fanny pack.

Lucifer-Prime

With cargo shorts?

Harold76

I was dressed as a dad so that was mandatory.

MrShredder5002

1. Definitive Dadness

Sold 2 semi-desirable old European cars for a Honda Odyssey and didn't completely hate it.

Taco_air_is_heavy

H/T: Reddit

Old Wives' Tales People Still Believe For Some Reason

"Reddit user the_spring_goddess asked: 'What is an old wives tale that people still believe?'"

Close up of an owl tilting their head to side, looking bewildered
Photo by Josh Mills

The old wives' tales.

They are the stories of legend.

I think we all need a big DEEP Google dive though.

Where did they originate?

WHO ARE THE OLD WIVES!

You don't hear about them as much anymore.

It's like science and logic are suddenly a thing.

But they sure are a good way to keep your kids and their behavior in line.

Redditor the_spring_goddess wanted to discuss the tall tales we've all been fed through life, so they asked:

"What is an old wives tale that people still believe?"

"Wait an hour to swim after eating."

What a crock!

So many summer hours wasted.

I want revenge for that one.

Say Nothing

Giphy

"An undercover cop has to tell you he's a cop if you ask him."

LonelyMail5115

"Pretty much most advice when it comes to cops are old wives tales. I’m not even a cop but most of the advice you hear is pretty off."

I_AM_AN_A**HOLE_AMA

Say Something

"That you have to wait 24 hours to report someone missing."

Severe_Airport1426

"I really think this one is important and should be the top regardless. As it’s a piece of advice that needs to be relearned and the only way to do that is through awareness."

crappycurtains

"This used to be true. I think they changed it after some guy named Brandon went missing back in the '80s or '70s. You used to have to wait 24 hours if the missing person was an adult because they had 'a right to be missing' and then everyone realized that was stupid and stopped doing it."

AlbinoShavedGorilla

Body Temps

"That drinking ice cold water after eating oily foods will solidify the oil and permanently remain in your body. I informed my coworker that if your body temperature ever reached that point, you’d have bigger problems than weight gain."

chriseo22

"Oh, I have a cousin who 100% believed this. One of those guys who believed every early 2000s internet rumor and old wives tale. One night I chugged a big glass of ice water after dinner and he started freaking out and saying my guts were gonna harden."

"I sarcastically told him to drive me to the hospital if that happened. Obviously, nothing happened and the next morning I said something like 'Thanks for being on standby in case my guts filled with hardened oil.' He just walked off muttering under his breath."

apocalypticradish

Arms Down

"When I was pregnant, I was told by young and old alike that I should NOT raise my arms above my head or exert myself in such a manner because it could cause cord strangulation to my unborn sons and daughters."

Fatmouse84

10 Years Actually

Unimpressed Uh Huh GIF by Brooklyn Nine-Nine Giphy

"Chewing gum stays in your stomach for 7 years."

REDDIT

"I remember accidentally swallowing a piece of gum when I was a kid in like 1995 and just accepting my fate like welp, gonna have this in my stomach til high school I guess."

Gecko-911

I was so afraid to sallow my gum when I was young.

This tale is haunting.

High/Low

Hungry Debra Messing GIF by Will & Grace Giphy

"You can tell the sex of the baby by how you carry."

LeastFormal9366

"Pregnancy certainly wins awards for the most old wives tales. So much absolute BS was repeated to us by everyone we talked to."

IllIIIlIllIlIIlIllI

The Cursed

"If you’re a woman and you wear opal jewelry but opal is not your birthstone (October), you’ll never be able to have children, or will be widowed, or just generally have bad luck or something. You can counteract this by having a diamond in the same piece of jewelry as the opal, though."

"I have a nice opal ring that my parents gave me years ago, and I’ve had other women give me this 'advice' unprompted more than once when I’ve worn it. I have absolutely no idea where it started, but I’m pretty sure this little chunk of silicate rock has no concept of what month I was born in, let alone of how my reproductive organs work."

SmoreOfBabylon

Stay In

"Going outside with wet hair will make you get pneumonia. Or an earache. Or maybe arthritis. Depends on which old wife you listen to."

"Jokes on them - I haven't blow-dried my hair in decades and usually leave the house with wet hair in the morning. On winter mornings, the tips of my hair get frozen. No ear infections or pneumonia or arthritis yet."

worldbound0514

Dreams and Facts

"You never make anyone up in your dreams you've seen everyone in your dreams somewhere else before and never make anyone up entirely."

"How would you possibly prove that to be true? My partner adamantly believes this and tells me this 'fact' whenever I have a dream about someone I've never met before."

mattshonestreddit

"My late wife used to tell me that before she met me she would have dreams of standing at an alter on her wedding day but could never see the guy's face, no matter how hard she tried. After meeting me the face was filled in with mine. Don't know if it's true but one of those things I like thinking of every now and then when I miss her."

Darthdemented

Cracked

Getting Ready Episode 2 GIF by The Office Giphy

"Some people still believe cracking knuckles causes arthritis."

Choice-Grapefruit-44

"There's a doctor (Donald Unger) that cracked his knuckles a couple of times a day for 60 years, but only on one hand, just to prove it. Both hands remained exactly the same."

MacyTmcterry

I love my knuckles.

Do you have any tall tales to add to the list? Let us know in the comments below.

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Far too many workers are unhappy with their job duties, workplace dynamics or company culture.

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Therapist talking during session
Photo by Mark Williams on Unsplash

Some people stand firmly stand behind their beliefs that everyone would benefit from therapy and that therapy is life-changing.

It's because of the totally life-changing truth bombs their therapist had dropped during their sessions.

Curious, Redditor anonymiss0018 asked:

"What is a little bombshell your therapist dropped in one of your sessions that completely changed your outlook?"

Communication Issues

"'If you don’t have these problems with any other person in your life, why do you think you’re the problematic person in this one?'"

- maggiebear

"I love this. I have a 'friend' who I always seem to run into misunderstandings with. Every time we had a conversation, it somehow turned into a debate even if it was me talking about my day. The conversations were never easy."

"I always evaluate myself first and take into consideration his critiques. He was very good at convincing me that I was contradicting myself or wasn't good at communicating my thoughts."

"I NEVER had this issue with ANYONE else in my life. I kept trying to figure out where the miscommunication was coming from. In the end, I just minimized contact and now I don't run into this issue."

- chobani_yo

"I read this quote somewhere once (and probably have it a bit wrong): 'It's a waste of time arguing with someone who is determined to misunderstand you.'"

- Reddit

Emotional Regulation

"'You can’t control your emotions, but you can control what you do with them.'"

"At the time, I was a young adult who had learned zero healthy emotional regulation skills (only suppression and shaming) growing up, so this blew my mind."

- lil_mermaid

Tough Relationships

"'It sounds to me like you are trying to convince yourself to stay with your girlfriend. I'm not so sure it should be so difficult.'"

"At the time he said this, I remember it was like he said, 'The earth is flat.' I thought he was crazy when he suggested relationships don't need to be difficult. But eventually, I started to realize I was trying to change myself to stay with this person rather than just being who I am."

"It took me three more months to finally break up with her but from that day on, I vowed to never again abandon myself just to be with someone I had convinced myself was better than me."

- metric88

High-Stress Situation

"I was at a high-stress time, and I asked her how people live like this."

"She replied, 'Oftentimes they have cardiac events.' She said it as an urging to care for myself as much as possible."

- KittenGr8r

The End of Alcohol

"I was struggling with my alcoholism, and we were discussing how I had been cutting back."

"She asked what I would consider success, with regard to my drinking."

"I said I wanted to get to a point where it wasn't interfering with my daily life. I wanted to just be able to have a glass of wine at holiday dinners or family gatherings."

"She simply asked me why. Why was it important for me to drink at those times?"

"It was as if she'd turned on a light. Alcohol had always been a key ingredient in every family function, for my entire life. When I smell bourbon, I think of my uncle. When I smell vermouth, I think of my dad. Alcohol ran through almost every happy childhood memory."

"But, even more than that, I was very afraid of the explanation I'd have to give when family and friends asked why I wasn't having a drink. I had tried to quit before but failed. What if I admitted my problem, only to fall off the wagon?"

"When she asked why I didn't want to completely quit, it was the first time I saw that last part of the big picture. I'd be willing to drink myself to death in order to avoid being scrutinized, or judged for possible future failures."

"That was the day I quit. I've been sober since May 6th, 2017. 2,407 days."

- sophies_wish

Acceptance vs. Enjoyment

"'Accepting something doesn’t mean you have to like it.'"

"That took away a lot of my inner conflicts about situations because I could accept a situation without expending energy internally fighting against the injustice of it."

- alibelloc

Emotionally Immature Parents

"You are not responsible for your parents' emotional wellbeing. They are independent adults who have been on this earth for many more years than you."

- SmokedPears

Not So Lazy

"'Why do you think you're lazy?' Then she listed off all the things she knows I'm doing for my family, my job, and my life."

"It kind of blew my mind when I struggled to come up with an example."

"She also described family dysfunction as water. Some families are messed up in a way that everyone can see the huge waves across the surface. Others are better at hiding it, but there's still a riptide that you can't see unless you're also in the water."

"It made me realize that trying to keep the surface from ever rippling doesn't erase what is happening underneath."

- flybyknight665

The Harm in People-Pleasing

"'Why do you make people more comfortable when you are uncomfortable?' when talking about people pleasing and fawning."

- ERsandwich

Agree to Disagree

"'Stop trying to get everyone to agree. When you need everyone to agree, the least agreeable person has all the power.'"

This really changed my outlook on planning family events."

- freef

Grieve and Start Anew

"For context, I had a major TBI (traumatic brain injury), seizures, strokes, and all around not a fun brain time when I was 28."

"They said, 'You have to grieve the loss of yourself.'"

"Most people wanted me to go back to how I was. The f**ked up truth is that part of my brain is dead. The person everyone (including myself) knew died. I needed to grieve the loss of myself."

- squeaktoy_la

Multifaceted Identity

"They told me that my job and career is just a way to make money; it's not my life or identity. That took a lot of pressure off me."

- unfairpegasus

Breaking the Cycle

"They validated me."

"'You always talk about not wanting to do to your daughters what your mom did to you. You worry about it so much in every interaction you have ever had with them."

"But your children are 19 and 21 now. They are happy and healthy and they trust you because you’ve never abused them in any way. So I just want to validate for you that you really have broken that cycle of violence."

"You did that. And you should be proud of it. I’m proud of you for it.'"

- puppsmcgee74

The Grieving Process

"I was constantly bringing up how I felt like a completely different person after my mom died... like there was a marked difference between before and after her death."

"But once, she was asking about my hobbies, I got really into describing all the things I loved to do or at least used to do before I got into a deep depression."

"She was like, 'Wow, you seem very passionate.'"

"And I just sat there like, 'Well, I mean, I can't change what I like to do, they're still fun to do.'"

"And it's like she knew when to take a step back, because it was like, wow, I may be super depressed about my mom passing, but I'm still me. I'm still my passions and those don't go away."

"I don't know, maybe it only makes sense to be, but it really started getting me back on track."

- Hannibal680

Sharing the Load

"I've never really had friends. I've had colleagues and classmates and housemates and people who have hung out with me, but I never really felt close to any of them."

"And I did that thing you see on here sometimes; I stopped reaching out to see if I would be reached out to, and I wasn't, which I took as confirmation that they didn't really want me around, or at the very least, that they wouldn't mind my absence."

"I was talking to my therapist about people I'd been close to in college, and she told me to pick one and talk about him. So I did. After I shared some basic stuff like his name and his major etc., and a couple of anecdotes, she asked me what else I knew about him."

"And I couldn't answer. It wasn't really a broadly applicable bombshell, but she said, 'What else?' and I started crying because I realized that for as simple as the question was, my inability to answer spoke volumes."

"I've never had good friends because I've never been a good friend. I'm withdrawn and reserved and I always made others do the work to drag me out, without ever extending my own friendship in a meaningful way in return. If I wanted to have meaningful relationships with other people, I would have to build them."

"I'm still working on this, but I'm trying to make more offers and extend more friendliness to others in my daily life."

- Backupusername

The discoveries in this thread were incredibly touching and profound; it's no wonder these were lasting concepts for these Redditors.

It's important to keep ourselves open to inspiration and insights from others, as we have no idea how their experiences could help us, or how we could help them.

Aerial view of a church in a small town
Sander Weeteling/Unsplash

There's something comforting about living in a small town.

It's characterized by close communities where neighbors know each other by name and there is an abundance of kindness extended to others.

Gift-giving is a commonality, as is the sharing of recipes, and people going out of their way to help each other in a time of need.

The pace of living in small towns is also a striking contradiction to city life, where crowds of people go about their busy lives without much interaction.

Curious to hear more examples of what small town living is like, Redditor official_biz asked:

"What's the most 'small town' thing you've witnessed?"

These are positive examples of a tight-knit community.

Live Updates

"We have a village Facebook page. Every time the ice cream man drives into the village, the entire page goes ballistic. People send live updates of where the van is and which direction he's heading. The ice cream man has started accepting DMs so he knows which streets to go down."

– PyrrhuraMolinae

Brush With The Law

"I’m from a town of less than 2,000 people. When I worked at the grocery store there people would often drop off stuff for my family members because they didn’t want to drive all the way down to our house. I no longer live there but recently got a call from my daughter. She had been stopped for speeding and handed over her license and insurance which happens to be in my mother’s name. The officer goes 'Hey, you’re Donnie’s granddaughter! I ain’t gonna write you a ticket but I’m telling Donnie when I see him tomorrow cause we’re going fishing.' She replied 'I think I’d rather have the ticket.'”

- Reddit

Roadside Catchup

"The traffic on the 'main street' of my town is so sparse, two drivers going opposite directions can stop and talk to each other for a few minutes without causing any problem."

– anon

When things go wrong, people take notice without incident.

Bank Robbery

"A guy robbed a bank and everyone knew immediately who he was and the teller got mad at him."

– AlexRyang

"A local bank was robbed and one of the tellers told the police to bring her a yearbook from about ten years earlier and she would be able to point the robber out. He had been in the grade before hers in school."

– Strict_Condition_632

Wise Woman

"When I worked at the bank in town there was an older lady that had worked there through 5 mergers."

"She knew everyone, there was a young guy yelling at me one day. She walked out of the back and he immediately quieted. She went off about telling his grandmother that he was treating young women like sh*t. She also said that if he didn’t straighten up not one girl in town would ever marry him she would make sure of it."

– ilurvekittens

Intoxicated Local

"Town drunk was paralyzed and used a motorized wheelchair to get around. I was driving home one Saturday night and said town drunk was passed out in his wheelchair doing circles almost directly in the town square. Had to call his brother who came and picked him up on a rollback truck. Strapped him down and drove off into the cold dark night."

– DoodooExplosion

Grazing Over To The Bar

"In my former small town, there was an older guy who'd lost his license after getting a few DUIs. Every day, he would ride his John Deere lawnmower to the corner bar around 3PM and sit around watching TV and sipping his beer well into the night. Then he'd head the couple miles back home on his mower. He even had a little canvass shell he put on when it rained or got too cold."

– brown_pleated_slacks

It's not surprising how small town people behave differently than those who are from metropolitan areas.

Welcoming Committee

"I lived in a small town. When I moved there, people would ask, 'Whose house did you buy?'"

–MoonieNine

"Move to a small town. 30 years later, you are still the new guy."

– impiousdrifter

"I lived in a small town for most of my childhood but I wasn't "from there" because my grandparents weren't from there."

– raisinghellwithtrees

"Worked with an older guy, relative of the owner of the business, he was 73. I asked him if he was a local, he said 'no his parents moved here when he was two.'"

– realneil

A Busy Day

"Lived in a town of about 5,000: A woman walked into the DMV on a Friday, saw that there were 3 people ahead of her and left to come back another time when they weren't so busy."

– KenmoreToast

Who Let The Dogs Out?

"My dogs got out while i was working. the police called my niece's elementary school (she was a 5th grader) to get her to round them up and take them back home."

– mediocrelpn

"There was a small kennel behind the police station for runaways. They called us saying they had our dog, and moments later our dog showed up home. He broke out of jail."

– Worried_Place_917

While life in a small town sounds appealing, I don't know if I can ever live in one.

I'm so used to life in big cities, I think it would be quite unnerving to adjust in a neighborhood where everyone literally knows your business.

I would be paranoid.

And I'm sure the same could be said of life in the big city.

Would you consider making the switch to life in a different setting?