Losers children and parents

Today while coming back from office, I remember a story that I read few days back- the story was about two friends who belonged to different genders. Both semed quite devoted to their new families (post marriage) but losing the thread that attach them with their parents.

The story is worth learning so I thought why not share it with you.

The male friend, lives with his parents, and is planning to settle abroad for better standard of living. He doesn't have any brother and hence, his parents are dependent upon him at the old age. He later moves abroad, and take some years before he settles there. Meanwhile, his parents have learnt to live alone in India and slowly but gradually, learn to live without him. At the same time, he too learn to live without them and then, his contact with his parents are on phone / occassional visits to the country.

Hence, his individual purusuits end up taking him away from the parents. The day then comes, when they both leave this world and then, loneliness starts creeping in and remind him of their love and affection. He also feel guilt that his improved standard of living is not able to fill the emptiness that his parents have left. Then, this loneliness pushes him to talk about the love and affection of their parents on the drinks table. He also prayed to god that his children won't do the same with him. Thus, the end is full of emptiness despite good bank balance.

Similarly, his female friend who is also married and seem happy with his husband is moving on somewhat similar lines. She is married and happily settled, but her husband only loves her and not her parents. His high male ego prompts him spending time alone than spending with her parents. Now whether it is dedicated love for his wife, or insecurity towards sharing her with anyone else is only known to him.

She has no brother and hence, somewhat responsibility about her parents lie on her. She tries little small things that she does to please her husband but forgets the bigger sacrifices that her parents have done for her while she grown up. Her parents too learn to live alone without her. Soon, she has two children and her visits to her parents' house confined to festivals, albeit without her husband. Her parents only live those days when their daughter visit the house. And one day, they too leave this world and she is only left with a husband, whose love is not as intense as it was used to be. Her children went to abroad and she too ends up being lonely.

In both the cases, who ends up being loser. In my views, both they and their parents end up on the losing side. Both end up having a emptiness in their kitty and guilt that they were not able to serve their parents like the way they could have done that. On the other side, the parents end up as any other old-aged couple, who wait for their "grown-up-and-responsible-kids" who have their individual pursuits to make their individual life better.

The story is a sad one, but indicates the harsh realities of today. It indicates that they we are unable to set right priorities for ourselves in the life. We tend to forget our responsibilities that we have for our parents and move towards fulfilling our ambitions that seem so important to us. We find tricks and ways to please our friends / spouse but don't even plan a small trick to please our parents who have nobody but us to please us.

Think about it, even if you seem so busy because there is someone in this world still who loves you from your heart!!!