A burden?

Peter Kua at Radicalhop.com raises some interesting questions about responsibility to aging parents and how society has changed.

Look at the 2 reasons for doing away with your bone-creaking, wheelchair bound parents in today’s culture:

An “social” burden. Unfortunately, there are loads of kids in this category. There are many of you who just can’t be bothered repaying the care your parents provided you. You have an important career and make good money. You have high society friends. But you are simply too preoccupied with your social engagements that your aging parents have become an inconvenience to you. At times, you’re even slightly embarrassed to be seen with them. You’d rather spend your free time with your partner clubbing the nights away, when you’re not too busy working and traveling. You’d rather play golf with your buddies instead of taking your parents out for a walk in the park. Basically you’ve forgotten what your parents gave up in order to raise you. You don’t even bother about them anymore.

A “true” burden. But there are some of you who are really struggling to juggle between taking care of parents and your own harsh lives. You are so busy making ends meet that it’s virtually impossible to take good quality care of your parents. And so, with a heavy heart and sincere pledge to visit as much as you can, you ship them off to an old folks’ home. It not a decision you can easily forgive yourself, but it’s certainly the best alternative for the time being. Until you sort out your own mess.

So, what excuse do you have if you find yourself belonging to the “social” burden category of useless kids?

Though there are as many different situations as there are families, sadly, there are some (I’d like to hope few) people who, though they have the means, simply won’t step up and be responsible.