Crazy things I believed as a child!

Oh to be young and innocent again! It really is true that children do say and think the funniest of things. Being a teacher, I have had some wonderful first-hand experiences of this. Calling sea lions, 'sea tigers', mistaking tourists for terrorists and trying to convince me with absolutely no doubt that polar bears lived in Scotland. Okay then... But it got me to thinking, as a child, you often end up believing in the most ridiculous of things and I'm sure my parents took more than full advantage of this fact! So, I decided to write a list of some of the bizarre things I believed as a child for your amusement:

1. Mints were made out of toothpaste

Toothpaste is minty right!? So obviously mints are made out of toothpaste. I really believed I had cracked this one and often attempted to make my own, 'mints' by leaving blobs of toothpaste out to harden. It is safe to say I didn't get very far with this one!

2. One of my primary school teachers was a witch

I'm sure many children remember a teacher that they don't like or is a little scared of, but this was much more than that! This was in the day of Roald Dahl's The Witches and I, along with many other children in my class, had put two and two together and discovered her terrible secret... Or so we thought! She wasn't even particularly strict, but we knew that as soon as you were alone with her, the wig would come off and she would turn you into a mouse faster than you could scream out your best friend's name!

3. Eating bread crusts would cause body hair

I remember my dad always telling me that I should eat my crusts because, 'They put hairs on your chest!' Erm, no thanks!

4. Perfume was made from flower petals

Well, I may not have been entirely out on this one but spending most evenings stealing flowers from the neighbours' gardens, soaking them in water and then bottling the contents in Tic Tac tubs and old medicine bottles wasn't one of my greatest business ventures. Especially not when the contents smelt like pond water and I was attempting to sell the perfume back to the neighbours whose flowers I had stolen. Awkward.

5. You were no longer a virgin if you had kissed somebody

I blame Madonna for this one and her song, Like a Virgin! My mum was an avid fan and I remember singing the words, having no clue as to the meaning behind them until during one rendition, my friend delightfully informs me that a virgin is someone who hasn't kissed anyone before. (And no, your family doesn't count! It had to be a boy and it had to be on the lips durrr!)

Can you remember any of the weird and wonderful things that you believed as a child?

Kirsty xx

All photographs via Pinterest.