Parenting used to be so concise and fully beneficial to kids; but a number of realities in the modern world have limited the positive impact of it. As Africans say, it takes a community to raise a child. Nonetheless, it is important that parents must never outsource all of the raising of a child to other parties.
Kids, from the age of 0 to 5, are mostly in need of special care and attention. Kids want to be fed, watched, hugged, cuddled, talked to, reassured and played with too. And yes, it is not just a simple demand, considering the hectic lifestyle most adults thriving in large cities, such as Lagos, go through everyday. But it is still unpleasant that some modern parents are not able to meet up with this simple demand by kids due to their own disinterest, lackadaisical attitude or engagements.
Certainly, rearing a kid in some fast cities is only too arduous a task for some type of parents but should the decision of having children still not center on the readiness of the parents to be available too? For instance, parents who are used to the reality of having all their house chores outsourced on their behalf from a very young age might find it more difficult adjusting to the chore of rearing a kid. A kid does not only need to be fed from a bottle anytime s/he is hungry; a kid does not just want his/her diaper changed; a kid does not only need an adult to clean him/her, a kid also needs some cuddles and hugs, some singing-to, some aimless teasing and laughter bouts. While it is true that some parents also make provision for the above needs by having a maid on demand and on stand-by, but research has also shown that it is better if a lot of these care-giving and doting came from the parent and not the nanny.
As the modern world gradually evolvs away from good parenting and slowly navigating towards self-preserving orientations such as individuality, narcissism and selfishness, it is not surprising that the number of badly behaved youth and criminals is increasing too.
Studies have also shown that absentee parents greatly impact how a kid or adolescent’s childhood is shaped. How a young person’s growth is formulated will impact greatly on whether the kid turns out to be a menace in the society or not.
In essence, while it is proper that both parents focus on their own lives, romance, careers and happiness too; that the products from such relationships should be given proper attention and personal care cannot be overstated. After all, parents should realize that one of the major reasons marriage was institutionalized not just to provide a companion and helper for partners, but also so as to provide proper nurturing grounds which would be sufficient for the upbringing and proper growth of a kid – and for the perpetuity of humanity.
Featured image source: Ministry of education, Guyana
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