Mothers, and Their Children
Is it the temper of the times, or were dire instances of human instability always present, less noted and noticed, when news was not quite so instantaneous, and shameful little lapses in vital human relations overlooked, not to be remarked upon, hidden from view. Two stories in the news this day, both of them relating to parenthood and to the outcomes of less-than-stellar attention to the needs of offspring.
In one instance, a 17-year-old girl living in Quebec; a mother of a three-week-old child. Barely out of childhood herself, and looking after the needs of a little girl of her own. But much can perhaps be explained by the patterning this young girl was exposed to, with her own mother. Who happened to be visiting her young daughter and new granddaughter. Who had accompanied her daughter outside of the home, to have a smoke.
The child left in the kitchen, while its mother and grandmother were nearby, on the balcony, smoking. What could, after all, happen to a baby strapped securely into a car seat, left by herself in the kitchen, easily, readily accessed by her caregivers? Unfortunately, access was readily attained also by the husky dogs on the premises; dogs not known for their gentle temperaments. The baby was mauled to death in the brief absence of her caregivers.
Clearly, this 17-year-old child-mother could not foresee such a devastating loss being visited upon her, the cruel death of her new baby girl. Perhaps the girl's mother could have and should have, but this was not the case. The baby is dead, and the young mother has been charged with manslaughter. And that too, is horribly cruel. For without doubt the mother is grieving her loss. And her ordeal will be prolonged when she is placed on trial.
Then there is the report from British Columbia, of a 46-year-old man living in Kelowna, whose mother, under a new B.C. law, is suing her son for parental support. Perhaps there are many adults whose aged parents are unable to care for themselves, and haven't the wherewithal to pay their way through their retiring years. And perhaps those adults don't find it too onerous to help support their parents.
But how can an elderly woman feel herself entitled to forcing her son to support her in her old age, when she herself failed to support her son in his youth? A mother who saw fit to abandon her young son at age 15, to his own devices. "They left and I had to stay here and provide (for) myself so I had to quit school and go to work", explained Ken Anderson.
Abandoned by his parents at a vulnerable age, to look after himself. Yet because of the new law enacted with the broad stroke of generalization, with the presumption that children always owe their parents something and there might never be any reason acceptable that they do not, this man must, by law, agree to provide his mother with a monthly living stipend.
Two sad and sorry instances of human failure to be responsible for one's own, intimate issues.
In one instance, a 17-year-old girl living in Quebec; a mother of a three-week-old child. Barely out of childhood herself, and looking after the needs of a little girl of her own. But much can perhaps be explained by the patterning this young girl was exposed to, with her own mother. Who happened to be visiting her young daughter and new granddaughter. Who had accompanied her daughter outside of the home, to have a smoke.
The child left in the kitchen, while its mother and grandmother were nearby, on the balcony, smoking. What could, after all, happen to a baby strapped securely into a car seat, left by herself in the kitchen, easily, readily accessed by her caregivers? Unfortunately, access was readily attained also by the husky dogs on the premises; dogs not known for their gentle temperaments. The baby was mauled to death in the brief absence of her caregivers.
Clearly, this 17-year-old child-mother could not foresee such a devastating loss being visited upon her, the cruel death of her new baby girl. Perhaps the girl's mother could have and should have, but this was not the case. The baby is dead, and the young mother has been charged with manslaughter. And that too, is horribly cruel. For without doubt the mother is grieving her loss. And her ordeal will be prolonged when she is placed on trial.
Then there is the report from British Columbia, of a 46-year-old man living in Kelowna, whose mother, under a new B.C. law, is suing her son for parental support. Perhaps there are many adults whose aged parents are unable to care for themselves, and haven't the wherewithal to pay their way through their retiring years. And perhaps those adults don't find it too onerous to help support their parents.
But how can an elderly woman feel herself entitled to forcing her son to support her in her old age, when she herself failed to support her son in his youth? A mother who saw fit to abandon her young son at age 15, to his own devices. "They left and I had to stay here and provide (for) myself so I had to quit school and go to work", explained Ken Anderson.
Abandoned by his parents at a vulnerable age, to look after himself. Yet because of the new law enacted with the broad stroke of generalization, with the presumption that children always owe their parents something and there might never be any reason acceptable that they do not, this man must, by law, agree to provide his mother with a monthly living stipend.
Two sad and sorry instances of human failure to be responsible for one's own, intimate issues.
Labels: Family, societal failures
posted by Pieface @ 6:17 PM
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