The parent-child relationship is not necessarily a sacred or constitutional one. It’s a bond purely set in unconditional love and endless sacrifice. It has always been simple. Parents give birth to children – dependent little humans who need care and support all through their childhood. The parents make sacrifices and commit to their obligations, and it doesn’t stop when the child hits 18. They stay active as long as youth and health would allow them, and when they are finally unable to cater for themselves or pay their own bills, the children they raised would step in to provide for them. Sometimes, even before they become inactive, their kids are already in charge of their welfare.
Great parents do not hold anyone to obligation over their welfare. They make sacrifices for their kids with a sense of obligation and just hope everything works out well by the time they are aged and old. Children who appreciate their parents’ hard work in giving them the best of what they could afford would eventually step in to care for the elderly. This is how it should be, and below are eight amazing sacrifices our parents make to keep us happy.
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Reliable schedules
The moment you become a parent, everything becomes a probability. You are not even certain of how possible it is to go to work on any given day. Kids are so unpredictable and could become sick, upset, or distraught at any point. You could be in the middle of a meeting and receive a call from their school to come tend to your sick child. My friend was pulled out of an examination hall once when her daughter refused to eat the whole day. It doesn’t matter how organized you’ve always kept your time and schedules. With kids, just be ready for anything.
Privacy
You can kiss all those long hours of soaking up the warmth in your bathtub goodbye. Imagine getting ready to settle down with your spouse at night and a three-year-old starts banging on the door, claiming there are monsters under her bed. Kids do not understand the concept of personal space and privacy, and if they want to slam you with endless questions while you’re trying to get some work done, you have to move with the flow.
Sleep
This is one of the reasons why so many people are terrified of becoming parents. However, it only lasts in the first year or two after a new child is born. Children do not have the same sleep-wake cycles as adults. They are asleep when you are awake with time on our hands, but when it’s time for you to crash, your baby will greet you good morning in cry language. Some parents try to fix this by taking turns so they won’t be completely sleep-deprived. Single parents often have to stay up all by themselves, endlessly. Sacrificing sleep to still get up and work the next day is one of the most amazing things parents do while raising their kids.
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Time
You often hear parents say, “They grow up so fast”. Actually, time is moving normally, but when you’re a parent, it always seems like there’s never enough of it. Parents devote so much time to caring for their children that it almost seems like a day is only 12 hours instead of 24. Between school runs, getting to work, meal times, reading time, homework time, bath time, and bedtime, parents are almost always on hyperdrive.
Personal desires
This is another reason why people are terrified of parenthood. You start saving for their future the moment your child is born. You can no longer indulge in those guilty pleasures as much as you used to because you have kids depending on you now. You must keep a safe roof over their heads at all times, send them to good schools, afford decent health care, and have money saved away for college and vacations. Parents are so sacrificial that even when they have extra cash to take care of themselves, they are more likely to indulge their children and drink in the sight of the happy little ones.
Comfort zones
As a parent, you must realize that you are no longer just your own person now. You have become a shield for someone else and you must stand up to the task to defend and protect them. People who are used to living within mental boundaries must step out of these limits to go above and beyond for the kids. It’s more difficult for people who are normally introverted people or dealing with anxiety. You’d be breaking through some of the toughest chains, but it will all be worth it in the end.
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Friends
You can’t have a perfect social life with kids. It’s just not possible if you really want to be a hands-on parent. Especially when some of your friends do not have kids of their own holding them down as well, it can be difficult to meet up and have fun like old times. They can’t invite you out on girls’/boys’ night out because you have kids to put to sleep or an upset baby who just won’t release you. Eventually, invitations stop going around and you find yourself engaging with people who are in the same phase. It’s a sad reality that can be avoided if friends talk more about these things before they start happening. We don’t have to become strangers because children are finally coming. We can try to make it work.
Peace of mind
Single life is usually characterized by a sense of responsibility only for yourself. You can decide to do whatever you want and live as you please with little consequences. With kids, well, every single decision has a major effect on something in the future. The responsibility can often become overwhelming and there’s little reprieve from your obligations. However, parents are wired to look at the bigger picture, knowing that if they stick to their duties now as parents, their kids will grow to be happy, well-adjusted, and responsible individuals.
In conclusion
Parents make amazing sacrifices that words cannot always quantify. They give up decades of their lives to caring for their children, and at the very least, they deserve to know that in the future, when they are old and unable to care for themselves, they have people who will gladly come through for them.
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Sources
- Sleep Deprivation. Parents. https://www.parents.com/baby/new-parent/sleep-deprivation/Retrieved 25-08-2020