Last year, while I was fishing, I fell in the water. But, it really wasn't my fault. A small sunfish hit my chartreuse wooly bugger fly and I was fighting it. Then, a largemouth bass swallowed the sunfish. Then, a northern pike swallowed the bass. When that 8 foot musky exploded out of the water swallowing the pike in one gulp, the tidal wave it made capsized my boat and I fell in - so you can see that it wasn't my fault.

Everybody likes to hear a whopper of a fish story - you know they aren't true because they are such exaggerations. But, some folks tell fish stories about stuff other than fishing - and they aren't such exaggerations - they are more like 'minnow stories'.

For example, while I was shooting baskets, I made a shot from just above the freethrow line after missing 14 times in a row. But, when I tell people, I just say I made a shot from around the 3point line. That's a minnow - really just a lie, just stretching the truth a little.

The problem is that once the truth starts stretching, it just keeps stretching. My eyes were squinted while I was concentrating on the shot, so they were almost closed. No, they were closed. And, I was turned sideways to throw the ball. No, I was all the way backwards. And, I'm pretty sure I was closer to the center line than the 3point line.
So, now I made my first shot from the centerline behind my back with my eyes closed. Now, that's a whopper!

Once you stretch the truth a little, it is stretched out of shape and is no good. And, your word is no longer good. It's better to stick to the truth - minnows have a way of growing into whoppers.