When I was about 7, I was riding in a car with my grandmother and a Temptations song came on the radio. I told her 'you know this song', and she said 'No I don't recognize it'. I was sure she was lying to me because she was old and so was the song. It took me several years to grasp the idea of the generation gap, and that the Temptations were popular when my parents were teenagers.

Anon

My friend's five year old son can not understand the concept that his mother and I were friends before he was born. Whenever I kept him he thought I was a teenager like his other babysitters. One day he was being particulary rude and I explained to him that I was an adult just like his mother, and in fact am older than she is. He thought about this for a minute and replied, "Yeh but my mom is taller than you."

ik

I used to believe that everything was known, and adults knew everything, and that the only reason I didn't was that I was just a kid. I still remember how upset I felt when my mom said, "Well honey, Mommy doesn't know everything!"

Zorak the Mantis

When I was small, I used to believe that adults knew everything and never made mistakes. Now that I am one, I know better, but I am reminded of my own thoughts as I look into the innocent eyes of my three-year-old grandson.

Alice

I thought that after my sister graduated from high school, she was going to have to move to Europe to continue her studies (like the girl in a story I once read) and I'd never see her again. I cried throughout her entire graduation ceremony. After the ceremony, I summoned up the courage to ask my sister what she was going to do after school was finished and she shrugged her shoulders and said, "I guess I'll work at the ice cream shop." I was stunned and relieved. (though 6 yrs later she moved to Africa to teach)

ano

Every holiday I was amazed at how long my parents could sit and talk to my uncles and aunts and older cousins. I was sure that once I got older that would somehow seem more fun than going out and doing something. But it still doesn't.

dave bug

i used to be very afraid of growing up, because that would mean that my body would continue growing larger and larger to the point that i would be a freaky giant with no place to stay and no friends/family of "my size".

mike tee

I used to think adults were happy all the time, except on soap operas. And that adults knew everything, like how to order an airline ticket, and that really awed me.

redhotcinder

i used to believe that when you grew up you changed your name to something else. i thought i would change mine to george.

alan

i use to believe that the teenage years started at eleven, as in eleventeen. but then twelveteen just didn't sound right.

Pak

I used to believe that when you grew up, nothing scared you anymore.

Anon

I used to think that I was smarter than adults. Now I know kids are smarter than adults in many ways

Marshall M

From ages approximately ages 10 to 14, I had HUGE growth spurts (at one point, growing 6 inches in 3 months). The "growing pains" in my arms and legs were sometimes extremely painful. I was convinced that the pain was because I was dying from some horrible disease. I never told my mom about them because I knew how upset she would be at her youngest child dying, or at very least, it would bankrupt her from the medical expenses. There was nothing ever wrong with me. :)

Knox

I thought that when I grew up I would have really curly hair for some reason (it's as straight now as it was then). I would also have an oak-panelled study and I'd sit and write in it and be stressed out. I'd have a nervous maid who'd bring me coffee on a tray. She looked kind of like the maid on the Cluedo box. None of this looks set to come true.

I later thought that when I turned 16 I'd be beautiful, have a boyfriend, and never say the wrong thing. Sad really

Anon

My ex-girlfiend's daughter was about 3 or 4 years old and her mother also had a 8 month-old baby boy at the time.

In conversation, I referred to the baby as a boy. The daughter corrected me and said "That's not a boy, that's a baby!"

She wouldn't believe me when I tried to explain that he was a baby boy. In her mind, it was either a boy or a baby, it couldn't be both, and clearly it was a baby.

Scott M. Stolz

I used to think that everyone lived to 100 and then automatically died. Because 100 is really old and nobody could ever lived past that.

Joey-Joe-Joe