Gullible is not in the dictionary

A few weekends ago some friends and I headed out to the Sierra Nevadas to spend the weekend at Shaver Lake near Fresno. It was incredible! I went wakeboarding for the first time, hung out, went swimming, ate a lot of tasty food and within two days managed to establish myself as the most gullible person alive.


It all started with a ghost story. That I requested. The cabin we were staying in ran off of a generator so at night it was lights out and candles lit. The circumstances were just begging for a ghost story. In my excitement, I neglected to recall that I really get freaked out and usually have nightmares. That reality suspended, I encouraged Jason (our host and my boss) to tell the story he had offered the night before but we were too tired to embrace. He stalled for a little while, but in typical fashion, I egged him on. He feigned shyness which I should have picked up on since he's a performer and a bit of an attention whore (clue 1). He claimed he didn't know any good ghost stories. But with all eyes on him and nowhere to retreat, he finally offered a "true story of something that happened to me as a child" (clue 2).

The story began as we all cuddled up on the couches and in our sleeping bags. There were some dramatic moments but I continued to remain calm as I layed on the ground next to him. Then the story took a turn. A childhood friend of his disappeared during a hunting trip only to be found dead three days later. I bolted upright with a serious sense of concern for Jason's loss. He began to tear up and pause throughout the rest of the story (what a drama queen - and clue number 3). The story got more dramatic as there's suspicion of foul play in his friend's death. Jason started to pause more and more and he seemed to be struggling for words (clue 4). Things got even more intense when his friend's brother dies in a hit and run after he begins investigating his brother's death. (Doesn't this sound like an episode of NCIS? - clue 5).

As Jason continued, his father came in from outside. As he walked past us into the bedroom, he looked at Jason and said, "you realize it was around this time of year, right?" Jason responded, "yeah, thanks Dad!" and started to cry. I was totally and utterly invested. I could already see the end of the story and was absolutely terrified. His friend's murderer was coming after Jason (I can't believe I don't see where this is going!!) and I began to panic. That weekend was the 10 year anniversary of his friend's death and the five year anniversary of his friend's brother's death (clue 6). As I became more frightened, I started to realize that I am sleeping alone that night under a window. That does not lock. There are no lights. And I am defenseless. Jason's story ended with him looking up at one of the windows and saying, "and this weekend...he may...OH MY GOSH!! THERE HE IS!!!! " and I shrieked like you wouldn't believe. I jumped and cowered like a sad little girl, my heart beating a million times a minute. I think I may have even cried a little bit.

Rest assured dear readers that I did realize that the story was a fake...eventually. But I was still so anxious that I had to convince Jason to sleep in the living room with me that night so I didn't have a panic attack in my sleep. And so that on the off chance his story was true, the killer would find who he was looking for and not kill me by mistake. (Jason I love you but that's what you get for scaring me like that!)

I managed to make it through the night and the daylight brought peace to my soul and my pulse down to a normal rate. But trust me, that wasn't the end of my gullibility. On a hike that next morning I fully believed that I was walking through an area that was used to film both an epsiode of the Twilight Zone and was the scene of the ewok village in Star Wars. It wasn't until I heard snickering behind me that I realized I had once again been fooled. Sometimes, I make myself sad.

The moral of this story is - book smarts don't equal street smarts. I pray that God gives me a husband that can save me from myself.

In the end though, I don't know that being gullible is such a terrible thing. Aside from entertaining my friends, I think it adds to my optimism and sense of wonder. When I watch movies or read a great story, I totally buy it. I get wrapped up in the worlds they create and am totally invested in the journey they are taking me on. I don't know that I want to lose that. I think you have to be a little gullible to be a romantic. I feel bad for those that live the alternative.