Parents and Children

I had lunch with a friend KYK on Friday. He seems to have aged a little since we last met.

He spoke about his kids naturally. I remembered his kids to be cheery, obedient and bright. It is a little disconerting that they have turn up to be otherwise, especially the boy.

The sad part is, my friend had slapped his son in a recent confrontation. This incident brought back the recent memory of my dear girl friend LKL- who also shared with me about her increasing tension with her teenaged son and similarly, she had slapped and pinched her son in her fit of disappointment and anger.

Back home, my nieces and nephews remain a constant challenge to my siblings as well.

It is always said that children are angels given to one from God or they are bundles/miracles of joy for parents.

But are they really? Everyone says 养儿一百岁，常忧九十九。。

Whether children are blessings depend on tons of factors - karma, parents' maturity and outlook in bringing up the children, environment, peer influences, school influences, internet influences and the list goes on.

Parents, good or bad, believe in giving their children the best possible love, guidance and environment. This is generally true though the application of such love and guidance may not be communicated in a way that is receptive to the children.

And there is always this gap where the children are often not appreciative, self-centred and think the worst of their parents.

Such gaps can result in a host of unhappy relationships as children grow..

The issues are much more diversified for sure but I have no insights. But the reality of increasing deterioration of human relationships, starting from home, is saddening indeed....