Now that I am a parent, I understand vividly what it takes to raise a child. The sacrifice, the time, the pains at the labor room, the energy,the sleepless nights, the hard work, etc. are what parents go through in nurturing their offspring. We can't even repay our parents with any amount of money you can think of; we can only try our best to care for them, but not at the expense of our happiness. To me as a child, it's not just necessary because it's not my responsibility; however, I can be thoughtful to assist.
My kids and me, designed using canva
I think it's wrong for parents to pass on family responsibilities to their children even after they graduate from school. This is because parents willingly brought these children into the world, and it's their duty to take care of them. My parents are my primary role models. Even as my siblings and I graduate from school, they never transfer any family responsibilities to us. My mom will rather assist you from her earnings. She didn't stop working, nor did she stop doing her business, because we are all graduates and can take on family responsibilities. Many times, my siblings and I are the ones to request that we assist my family financially. We can look for an important project in my family, discuss it within ourselves, and carry it out without the knowledge of my parents, and whenever my mom finds it out, she will remind us that this is never our responsibility and that we should focus on building our lives because we have our lives to live. She loves it more when we just show her motherly love and care, but she never bothered us financially. I really love her mentality, and so shall I do to my kids.
Why should I allow my children to carry burdens that are not supposed to be theirs? My children cannot repair any of my laborious effort, and I wouldn't stress them financially even when they are fit because it's not their responsibility. However,they can choose to thoughtfully assist whenever they are capable of doing so freely.
I know a parent who once said, "I am investing in my children so that when they make it in the future, they will in turn overtake the family responsibilities" . Many parents, too, have this mentality. In my home town, there is this man who nearly frustrated the life of his only son simply because his expectations weren't met. The man expected the son to join his mate and make money by any means just after finishing secondary school, but unfortunately, the son couldn't lay his hands on things that could give him the big money the father expected. This man will wake up so many mornings to keep comparing his son with others; his words were demoralizing to the son, and out of desperation, he joined bad guys in the quest to make money and repay his dad for nudging him to that level. Luckily for him, things went wrong in the process of some rituals in the native doctor's house, and he escaped from there. On hearing this confession from the young lad in our village square that faithful afternoon,I was dumbfounded. Many people blamed the father for his action. This is really a wrong notion that many parents practice.
On the other hand, it's also equally a mistake for any child to think that he can repay his parents for any laborious effort. Just like this young boy in my story thought and started making the wrong move due to pressure from his dad, Children owe nothing to any parent; their existence is never at their personal request, and they shouldn't assume any responsibility not meant for them because no matter the riches you shower upon your parents, you cannot repay them.
This post is in response to the first question in the Ladies of the Hive community contest. Click here to find the prompt, and feel free to participate.
Please note, all pictures are mine
