Evie, How true, especially around children. A young child's interpretation processes can't yet filter out sarcasm and idioms, nor do they know enough about human nature to just put it down to PMS, or that Mommy's having a bad day, or all those numerous other hectic reasons why parents might say those kinds of things to their children.

Children just hear what they hear, internalize it to their detriment and, like weeds in the garden, those words begin to take over, gradually killing off the good stuff.