People Are Sharing Their Family’s Darkest Secrets And They’ll Make You Feel Normal

Everyone has their secrets—it's just part of being human. We sometimes forget that these secrets can be something that might bring us together if we felt brave enough to share them, or they might be secrets that would break everything down.

These people have shared some of their family's weirdest and most wacky family secrets, and let's just say you're going think you're totally normal after this.

This Was A Roller Coaster Ride

a story about someone who forgets who they are and becomes a pirate
Photo Credit: Reddit / Floradonna // Unsplash / rozetsky
Photo Credit: Reddit / Floradonna // Unsplash / rozetsky

The person who heard this story thought that it was totally unbelievable...

That is, until they were shown proof like letters from the priest and written testimonials from other people who knew him.

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What A Thing To Discover By Accident

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someone found out they had a secret sibling from old letters
Photo Credit: Reddit / Thug-laifu // Unsplash / Anne Nygård
Photo Credit: Reddit / Thug-laifu // Unsplash / Anne Nygård
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They never asked their parents about it because they didn't want to reopen any of those old wounds, and they make sure to visit their sister's grave at least once a year.

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What a dark secret to keep for so long.

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Have You Heard Of Popovers?

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someone thought popovers were something only known by their family
Photo Credit: Reddit / Gumburcles // Unsplash / Alex Holyoake
Photo Credit: Reddit / Gumburcles // Unsplash / Alex Holyoake
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Not all family secrets are crazy. Some are like this one, where the family secret isn't much of a secret at all.

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How did he not know, though, for so long? That's wild.

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A Double Whammy

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someone found out that their mom was married before
Photo Credit: Reddit / OriginalClownHerpes // Unsplash / freestocks
Photo Credit: Reddit / OriginalClownHerpes // Unsplash / freestocks
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It's one thing to find out that your mom's marriage to your father is her second marriage. Not that big a deal, but still shocking.

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But then to find out that your siblings aren't even really your siblings?!

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Grandma Sounds Mean

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story about a grandma who threw out Lynda Bird Johnson's application
Photo Credit: Reddit / mdnightwriter // Unsplash / Mateus Campos Felipe
Photo Credit: Reddit / mdnightwriter // Unsplash / Mateus Campos Felipe
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Some people's grandmas sound like they were kind of the worst. Imagine thinking that you were too good for the president's daughter?

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And then making up such a silly lie about it, too?

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She Was Only Being Polite

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aunt got married and didn't tell anyone, just left a note
Photo Credit: Reddit / Smiilie // Unsplash / Dev Benjamin
Photo Credit: Reddit / Smiilie // Unsplash / Dev Benjamin
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Honestly, do you blame them? Weddings are such a headache and they take so much planning and cost so much money!

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Why not run away to the beach and celebrate together?

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Hearts Were Broken That Day

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mom told her kids hamburger helper was a secret family recipe
Photo Credit: Reddit / TanglingPuma // Unsplash / Reinaldo Kevin
Photo Credit: Reddit / TanglingPuma // Unsplash / Reinaldo Kevin
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At least they now know that their favorite from-scratch meal is actually a pretty easy and inexpensive meal to make, true to college form.

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Exciting and also disappointing, but still delicious either way.

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That's A Lot To Explain To The Kids

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grandparents secretly hated each other, grandkids didn't realize until they were adults
Photo Credit: Reddit / dont_find_me__ // Unsplash / Annie Spratt
Photo Credit: Reddit / dont_find_me__ // Unsplash / Annie Spratt
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This is what it comes down to? They'd rather be unfaithful to their partner than get a divorce and be able to date whoever they want freely?

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People should believe whatever they want, that's their right, but sometimes it seems strange.

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We've All Experienced This One

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parents replaced child's fish a bunch of times
Photo Credit: Reddit / Wild_Biophilia // Unsplash / Adil Wahid
Photo Credit: Reddit / Wild_Biophilia // Unsplash / Adil Wahid
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My parents did this to me, only it was with a stuffed animal, not a pet.

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I thought that the stuffed bear I'd had since I was little was the same one the whole time, but really it's like the eighth version.

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How Do You Lie About That?

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someone lied about having cancer for almost ten years
Photo Credit: Reddit / 2002dela // Unsplash / Andres Siimon
Photo Credit: Reddit / 2002dela // Unsplash / Andres Siimon
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What I want to know is how this person was able to lie about it when they were that sick?

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Wouldn't the chemo get to them? Wouldn't they be weak and tired all the time?

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He's Just Looking Out

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uncle told young kids he had a watermelon growing in him and they later realized he had cancer
Photo Credit: Reddit / Mightsnipe // Unsplash / Mockup Graphics
Photo Credit: Reddit / Mightsnipe // Unsplash / Mockup Graphics
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This is really endearing in its own way. He didn't want the little ones in his family to worry about him.

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It's amazing the things we're just willing to believe as a child.

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Yeah, I Get It Now

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someone's dad was weird about letting them drink Kool Aid and it was because they were part of Jamestown clean up crew
Photo Credit: Reddit / Yalahini // Unsplash / Sophie Vinetlouis
Photo Credit: Reddit / Yalahini // Unsplash / Sophie Vinetlouis
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I would never press the Kool-Aid issue again with my parents if I found out this bit of information.

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You never really think of something like that having a cleanup crew, but here we are.

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Everyone Wins In This One

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kids found out their biological dad was a family friend because their parents couldn't have kids
Photo Credit: Reddit / SeaOkra // Unsplash / Ben Wicks
Photo Credit: Reddit / SeaOkra // Unsplash / Ben Wicks
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Yeah, it's a little unconventional, but this is mostly just a story about a bunch of people who were looking out for one another.

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It's too bad that man died, though. It would have been interesting to meet him.

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Well, That's Awkward

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family found out they were the secret family of their grandparent
Photo Credit: Reddit / friendlylycanthrope // Unsplash / Kelli McClintock
Photo Credit: Reddit / friendlylycanthrope // Unsplash / Kelli McClintock
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I think the secret family thing is something that kind of happened a lot and probably still does.

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What would you do if you found out that you were secretly the "other" family all along?

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Does He Want The Family Name?

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someone's dad used to be in the mafia and was wanted by the police
Photo Credit: Reddit / Sleippnir // Unsplash / Henrique Ferreira
Photo Credit: Reddit / Sleippnir // Unsplash / Henrique Ferreira
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Despite the wild life that this guy lived, he actually died of a botched surgery later in his life.

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I guess he didn't expect to go that way, but better than how he did expect to.

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A Very Sad Memory

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person remembers being told they were going to have a sibling that never showed up
Photo Credit: Reddit / GrilledCrabCat // Unsplash / Nynne Schrøder
Photo Credit: Reddit / GrilledCrabCat // Unsplash / Nynne Schrøder
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It's always sad to look back on moments like this and see that it was probably a time that your parents were really hurting.

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You never realize as a kid.

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Merry Christmas To You

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someone found out from Ancestry DNA kits that their dad wasn't their real dad
Photo Credit: Reddit / __littlespoon__ // Unsplash / National Cancer Institute
Photo Credit: Reddit / __littlespoon__ // Unsplash / National Cancer Institute
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Imagine getting this cool fun gift for Christmas that is supposed to help your family all get to know each other better and it actually just exposes everyone's well-kept secrets?

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That would be quite a twist.

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That Explains A Lot

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someone found out their dad had another family that died before them
Photo Credit: Reddit / Contrariwise2 // Unsplash / Scott Graham
Photo Credit: Reddit / Contrariwise2 // Unsplash / Scott Graham
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I guess he just didn't want history to repeat itself and he was just worried about everyone involved. I wonder why they didn't tell him that sooner, though.

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Maybe they wanted to put the past behind them.

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Bananas Can Be Lethal

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uncle robbed a store by throwing bananas at someone
Photo Credit: Reddit / Horse_Armour // Unsplash / Brett Jordan
Photo Credit: Reddit / Horse_Armour // Unsplash / Brett Jordan
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This would be a secret in my family because no one would be able to get through this one without laughing because of how ridiculous it sounds.

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I wonder if they stayed in touch.

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This Got Dark

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someone kept a person in their bathtub after they died
Photo Credit: Reddit / ButtTurkey // Unsplash / Dan Smedley
Photo Credit: Reddit / ButtTurkey // Unsplash / Dan Smedley
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The people who came home from the war were obviously changed, and it was a super hard time for everyone, but this is something that's just so sad.

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I hope he got the help he needed.

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Let's Hope He's OK

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a baby went missing and they think the mob stole it and that the baby is still alive in Sicily
Photo Credit: Reddit / itsmeggynotpeggy // Unsplash / Markus Spiske
Photo Credit: Reddit / itsmeggynotpeggy // Unsplash / Markus Spiske
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If this happened to you, wouldn't you be really interested to try and track that person down and see if you can connect with them?

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I guess it could be dangerous, but after all these years?

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The Man Needed Better Friends

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someone's uncle was investigated for the Green River Killings
Photo Credit: Reddit / UserNameNotFound-404 // Unsplash / Nicholas Bartos
Photo Credit: Reddit / UserNameNotFound-404 // Unsplash / Nicholas Bartos
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You've really got to ask yourself how much someone can be influenced by their friends. What did this guy know? Was he involved?

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There are too many questions with answers you probably don't wanna know.

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What A Reason To Win At Court

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grandfather was a bootlegger with a peg leg
Photo Credit: Reddit / noodlenugget // Unsplash / Benigno Hoyuela
Photo Credit: Reddit / noodlenugget // Unsplash / Benigno Hoyuela
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This story is excellent. It has everything you want.

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Some intrigue, just enough illegal activity, and it even has the story of a peg leg that got a man excused for his crimes.

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It Was A Different Time

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someone got a baby from a coworker
Photo Credit: Reddit / PCR12 // Unsplash / Georgie Cobbs
Photo Credit: Reddit / PCR12 // Unsplash / Georgie Cobbs
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This is less of a secret and more of a lot of raised questions that everyone needs to work through.

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It might even be better just to let this one be.

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I'd Be Embarrassed Too

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someone's cousin was on Jerry Springer
Photo Credit: Reddit / MissyChevious613 // Unsplash / Francisco Andreotti
Photo Credit: Reddit / MissyChevious613 // Unsplash / Francisco Andreotti
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Luckily, now there is this thing called the internet, and it would mean that they could probably find some kind of version of that episode.

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I think we'd all like to see it.

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You Gotta Do What You Gotta Do

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story about someone who embezzled from a company in the 1930s
Photo Credit: Reddit // Unsplash / Dan Meyers
Photo Credit: Reddit // Unsplash / Dan Meyers
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Ideally, you wouldn't abandon your family after it was your fault that they had to uproot their lives and run away, but that was the 1930s and it was a much different time.

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At least, that's what they'll tell you.

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There Is One In Every Family

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someone in the family is terrified of tomaotes
Photo Credit: Reddit / Killybug // Unsplash / Tom Hermans
Photo Credit: Reddit / Killybug // Unsplash / Tom Hermans
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To be fair, tomatoes are kind of gross and I can see why someone might claim to be afraid of them.

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Maybe that works better at restaurants than saying you're allergic.

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OK...Wow Did Not See That Coming

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someone's grandpa was actually a priest
Photo Credit: Reddit / lchristian99 // Unsplash / Akira Hojo
Photo Credit: Reddit / lchristian99 // Unsplash / Akira Hojo
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Have you ever in your life heard about a priest being able to pull off having two lives?

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One of which was a family? He was obviously a very confused man.

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Get 'Em, Grandma

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grandma beats people up who cheat at bingo
Photo Credit: Reddit / MuffinWithaShotGun
Photo Credit: Reddit / MuffinWithaShotGun
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You get to a certain age where you just don't worry the same way you used to.

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If someone's cheating at Bingo, then that person should go down. This is the law of the hall.

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This Is A Legit Thing

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people get food from the garbage
Photo Credit: Reddit / squonkersmcgee // Unsplash / Paweł Czerwiński
Photo Credit: Reddit / squonkersmcgee // Unsplash / Paweł Czerwiński
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There are whole groups of people who do this every morning because it's true, grocery stores waste a lot.

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It's insane the amount of perfectly good food that gets thrown out for whatever reason every day.

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Probably Could've Handled This Better

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mental institution dark confession
Photo Credit: Reddit / seanchaigirl // Unsplash / Daria Nepriakhina
Photo Credit: Reddit / seanchaigirl // Unsplash / Daria Nepriakhina
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Why go to the effort of committing your daughter to a psychiatric institution when you could've just paid the boyfriend off to get him to go away.

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It probably would cost about the same.

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She Wanted Them All To Herself

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urns in the laundry room family secret
Photo Credit: Reddit // Unsplash / chrissie kremer
Photo Credit: Reddit // Unsplash / chrissie kremer
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It must've been a closed casket funeral, or that mom managed to pull of quite the body swap after the funeral...

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How would you manage to hide something like this from everyone else?

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Now That's An Interesting Family Dynamic

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dad who lived in the garage
Photo Credit: Reddit // Unsplash / Andre W. Nguyen
Photo Credit: Reddit // Unsplash / Andre W. Nguyen
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Imagine your mom making a whole thing about you going to visit your dad on weekends, just for you to walk through the garage door.

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That's a weird one to explain to the neighbors who see him in there.

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How Did He Have Any Time To Himself?

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grandfather who had four children
Photo Credit: Reddit / talk_to_the_hands // Unsplash / Meritt Thomas
Photo Credit: Reddit / talk_to_the_hands // Unsplash / Meritt Thomas
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Look, one secret would be a hassle to manage. Two secret families outside of your primary one would be incredibly time-consuming, but having four families to manage?

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Who gets to see dad on holidays?!

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He'll Be Rolling Over In His Grave

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lots of money for the family to steal
Photo Credit: Reddit / ask_me_if_Im_lying // Unsplash / Sharon McCutcheon
Photo Credit: Reddit / ask_me_if_Im_lying // Unsplash / Sharon McCutcheon
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We expected this story to end with some sort of vindication like the family fought for money that turned out to be related to some sort of crime resulting in them having to give it all back.

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Sadly, they got to keep it.

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Grandpa Seized His Opportunity

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grandpa sailed away from england
Photo Credit: Reddit / jakash // Unsplash / Bruce Warrington
Photo Credit: Reddit / jakash // Unsplash / Bruce Warrington
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Unfortunately, this happened a lot more than anyone would care to admit.

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It's hard to keep track of your husband when he takes a boat across the sea to a new world and you have no way of contacting him.

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That's Quite The "Accident"

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army base pregnancy cover up
Photo Credit: Reddit / SaguaroMommie // Unsplash / Suzy Brooks
Photo Credit: Reddit / SaguaroMommie // Unsplash / Suzy Brooks
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Something tells us that whatever medicine she was mixing up that she "accidentally" poisoned her husband with actually did exactly what she hoping it would do.

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And based on the way this post was written, her family also thinks that.

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Real-Life Wife Swap

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grandparents who swapped spouses
Photo Credit: Reddit / Turinggirl // Unsplash / Elien Dumon
Photo Credit: Reddit / Turinggirl // Unsplash / Elien Dumon
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So the person who used to be your in-law is now technically your step-parent, but they're also still your in-law, and they're all the grandparents of your children still...

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That's not confusing at all to put on a family tree.

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But Did He Get The Girl?

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bar fight murder
Photo Credit: Reddit // Unsplash / Patrick Tomasso
Photo Credit: Reddit // Unsplash / Patrick Tomasso
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If you're going to go to the trouble of committing murder, becoming a fugitive, and then changing your name while heading South, we hope that you at least managed to get the girl.

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Otherwise, what was the point?

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That Makes For A Shocking Christmas Morning

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christmas miracle secret children
Photo Credit: Reddit / charlottedhouse // Unsplash
Photo Credit: Reddit / charlottedhouse // Unsplash
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I guess you could argue that at least she had the decency to keep her secret children hidden until after her husband passed away.

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But the rest of her family probably didn't care about that.