Need a time machine?

If you guys have been previous readers of Abby's previous blog here, you'd probably remember her writing a post about parents being overprotective, if not you can check it out here. Well today i'll be harping on the topic of Parent's who are still stuck in the last century. Yes, i mean Parents in their early/late 40s or 50s who are just as old fashioned as my great grandmother. Because even my grandmother has accepted the ideas of the 21st century. Well most of it.

To be honest, I have friends who have overprotective parents, like those really serious kind.. I'll try and list some of the traits of old fashioned/conservative parents and also state the effect on a child's growth by living with such parents.

"I want you to grow up to be a doctor/lawyer/engineer"

(and they dismiss other studies ie psychology, mass comm..) Sounds familiar? I dare say a majority of teens who grew up in a typical chinese family with OLD FASHIONED PARENTS would have suffered from this mindset. We were built for so much more, God made each and everyone of us different with different passion, strengths and weaknesses in life. While I agree that the aforementioned jobs are safe,secure and provide a decent income, I also strongly believe that passion is a driver.

For anything in life. Whatever we do, it is done at our best when done with passion. Growing up with such parents could hinder a child's true potential, if his parents do not identify his character, strengths and weaknesses.. as these will truly assist the child to realize and be more keen on focusing on not only his personal education, but also whatever it takes to achieve his dream/job interests, filled with passion.

"Why do you need to have a boy/girlfriend?''

You're a student,the duty of a student is not this! The duty of a student is.. *insert definition here, long nag by parents* You want to do all this you do after you out of *insert level of study here*"

First they question you in such of a manner as though it is wrong that you have feelings for someone of the opposite sex and engaged into a relationship with your other half. These parents know it all, and they are justified by their appreciation for education (which exists because they had parents that did not care if they made it or not when studying). Those were the times where people couldn't care less if people were getting themselves educated, it was like the odds for your child to graduate from a course (ok maybe not course), i mean from college, the odds for your child to graduate are slimmer than winning money on the roulette. Things that they themselves missed out as parents?

1. Parents then did NOT care. about their child studying. In fact some didn't even care at all. Notice how parents now learnt to be thankful and appreciative of education WITHOUT the care. Something's are best self learnt. Life is a great teacher, don't rob your children from the precious life tutorials.

2. After graduating from uni, it DOES NOT MAKE YOU KING. Depriving your child of certain amount of freedom and then promising them you do WHATEVER you want after ur done wit studies? Dont. That's like teasing a lion with a steak outside of its lion cage. And the person holding the steak is actually shocked (doh.) when the lion prances on him with aggression when it is let out of the cage. This treatment from parents actually spoils most children and cause them to grow up to be adults that act childish and like spolit brats.

3."So? Better than him but still not better than most of the class right? Why you always must compare with those worse than you?" Over demanding is not only not beneficial for a child's growth. If it's abit for healthy competition, that's fine.. but don't forget.. children take your words seriously and they will feel that they are never good in their parent's eyes.

There is a huge pandemic all over the world, and it is still propagating itself. The pandemic that causes children to drift away from their responsibilities and get involved with un-morally events. All simply because, they could not see themselves, the way they were meant to, the way their parents see them..

Without the encouragement a kid deserves, he/she lacks the parental figure that sees them, thus causing them to lack that perspective, an image from their parent's point of view of themselves..Sometimes a 'good job' can change a person's life completely. Is it that hard to compliment your own kid you love so much? Not like you'll lose part of your body for doing so also..

But then again, Because they're parents who have their heads stuck in the 50s all the above as reasonable as it all sound will not be able to get through their stubborn heads. So do you have parents whose brains needs a time machine to transport it back to the 21st century?

I rest my case.

Cheez