I believe it was Husbinator who first referred to our kids as unreliable narrators. It's not that they lie; it's just not a good idea to take what they say at face value, certainly not before investigating further.
Take a conversation I had with FF the other night. He was doing something mildly unsafe, and I told him to be careful not to fall. He told me that someone fell, and it seemed to me that he was discussing something that happened at school. I asked if that child got hurt. He clarified that he himself fell down. I asked if he himself got hurt. FF said yes. I asked who had kissed him. FF said no one. This surprised me, since his teachers seem to be warm, caring and attentive. I asked if he had cried. FF said yes. I asked him to clarify that he had really fallen and gotten hurt and cried and no one kissed him. FF said that was right: he learned we don't climb on friends.
Ah. That makes more sense.
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