The man and his wife were an older couple, obviously married for a long time as the woman smiled knowingly as her husband launched into an engaging dialogue with me on the subject of lying. His sharp mind leapt to the intellectual challenge as a cat to a mouse. Whatever led us to that topic? Lying, now there’s a thing to be defined.
I was already fascinated by these two people even before they admitted they had a private book collection of 20,000 books (probably more than I had in my bookstore) and had no intention of quitting their passion now. They bought scholarly history books, plant identification books, and mysteries. I would guess by his oratorical voice that he was a former professor, or maybe a pastor.
Remember the old song “Fifty Ways to Leave a Lover”? How many ways of lying? Does lying come with as many definitions as the Eskimos’ words for snow? I told the man “I don’t lie…well, not directly…well, maybe once that I can remember…for someone else.” But if you include lying by omission then I am a great liar. Libel or malicious, intentional lying – no. Fabrication – no. Exaggeration – maybe. Moving along the continuum into “simple” dishonesty…dishonesty about who you are or your intentions – I don’t think so. Mistakes not corrected, such as the wrong change – no. Stealing – no. Betrayal is a form of the lie and is — in my philosophy— the worst sin. Have I ever betrayed anyone – I don’t think so. I do feel like I have betrayed some animals.
The afore-mentioned great conversation I had with the charismatic debater has now faded into memory. Yet I return to the subject of lying because I participate in the one form of writing which should have the highest standard of truth-telling: the private diary. Here, at last, one is unleashed from all restraint. The bold, naked truth can be told. No one to impress, no politics to play, no fear of social rejection, no hurt feelings of friends or family. (That is, if it can be kept private.) Why would you EVER lie in your journal?
Most famously, it is said that my favorite diarist, Anais Nin, fabricated stories in her diary. Do I believe this? This was a woman married to two men at the same time, flying back and forth to see them, keeping a notebook of her lies so she would not forget what she told each man. That’s quite a lie. I pass no judgment there. If she really did make up parts of the diary though, I feel betrayed. I will read it as fiction. It is good fiction, no, it is astonishingly beautiful and insightful fiction. Her writing is all poetry.
But why did she do this – lie? The only lying in my journals is where I am fooling myself into believing what is not true. I try not to omit details that would reveal truth. I try to quote accurately. I never intentionally lie in my journals. I want the truth to be told…at last…to someone (the unknown reader of the future)…and this outweighs my fear of being judged. We are all judged. We all judge others.
Are you familiar with the story of King Midas? Let the truth be told in your journals. “King Midas has asses ears.”
Who lies in their diary?
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Tags: diaries, journaling, lying, lying in diaries, published diaries
National Diary Archive 
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