Taking care of the future

One of the hottest topic on local news now regards the sandwiched generation and their commitments to the people who took care of them and to the people they are to take care of.

I've been following the opinion letters written in by people who shared their experiences with their parents and why they chose to or not to take care of their elderlies. Some says that it is not hard to take care of old people, some say that it is, some wants the government to intervene to ease their financial burdens (as they do in every single issue of their life) and some even stated that it was not worth it.

This makes me really sad. Not because I revel in the need to have everyone taken care by someone to find peace in this world, but that in reality, not all parents are good and not all children who dump their parents in old folks' homes are bad. I know of kids who never speak to their fathers (my husband is in that category a while ago), fathers who do not bother helping their wives to take care of their babies and mothers who would sell their kids in an instant to make a few extra cash.

The problem is, with parenting, you do not need any pre-requisites or qualifications to be a parent. You can suck at it and still be able to call yourself a father or a mother. But if I believe in there being a supreme being out there watching over us, I'd like to believe in karma and an eye being for an eye.

Your child will repeat what you do. It's part of their learning process. So if they see you drop your parents in a government hospital then refuse to pay the bills so they stay in there, don't be surprised or upset if they do the same to you by the time you reach your golden years.

As for those who love their children to bits and expect that they return the favour when they are grown up, I say do yourself and your kids a favour. Stash some money for yourself and for your partner. Just because you're vegetarian, it doesn't mean an angry bull will not charge at you. Get out of the way first before you give it a reason to knock you down. Similarly, help yourself first so you can help your kids help you. If you think things are too expensive now, it will get worse when your kid is out there in the working world.