A little white lie

white lie

noun

harmless lie: a lie perceived or intended not to harm, but told in order to avoid distress or embarrassment

Microsoft® Encarta® Premium Suite 2005. © 1993-2004 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

What is a white lie? and why is it colored white? Why can't it be colored orange and be called an orange lie?

I have a quick, simple answer, which you probably have thought too. It's because of the meaning of the color white. White symbolizes purity. While is orange enthusiasm, and you shouldn't be at all enthusiastic about telling a lie. So i guess that's it, lying with "pure" intentions.

or it can be because the color white can be blinding. To much white can hurt our eyes so we squint and turn the other way around, protect ourselves from being blinded.

or it could be both.

I'm sure most of us have been in a situation where we had to lie because 'goodness' forced us to do so. The most common reason for us Filipinos is "ayaw kong saktan feelings nya"..,

When we think about it, we tell white lies a lot and not think it's a white lie. For example you're crying in a corner and a friend sees. Your friend approaches you, pats you on the back and asks. "Hey, are you ok?" and our almost immediate answer is "yeah, ok lang ako" then you start sobbing hard.

As a whole, white lies do not have a very impact. It doesn't matter much in the big picture. When your significant other asks you if he/she is fat, you wouldn't say yes, right? You would not say no, but instead soften the truth up a bit so it wouldn't hurt. You have "pure" intentions. You don't want to cause pain.

But then again, let's see the gravity of these white lies. A little white lie to make someone look good can be dangerous. Especially coming from a person whom people rally to. For example, politicians. During campaign period, it is raining white lies. Every candidate has a "gig", a scheme, on how to catch the attention and reap the votes of the citizens. A lot of promises are made, like being for the poor, educational programs, sports programs and the likes, that come their term, never happens, or happens only when its nearing campaign period again and they are running for a reelection or someone from their family wants to run.

It's a sad truth about our country, that we are still being fooled by white lies. That we continue to be blinded by the "whiteness" of their words.