Things My Parents Didn’t Teach Me But Should Have

Most of us revere our parents, almost blindly. I was one of them.

They have given us life, education, food, shelter, and countless other things to be grateful for. We cannot imagine how many sacrifices they have made to raise us.

My father took a loan to give me the best education. My mother worked overtime at home catering to the needs of my ailing grandparents while tutoring me in my academic life and personal life as well.

But despite all these things, there are some reasons why I kind of hate my parents.

Following are the things I learned the hard way that I wish my parents taught me:

1. Protect the environment

My parents never cared to teach me about the importance of the environment and how fragile it is. We are so dependent on the environment for our sustenance.

Just like I owe my life to my parents, similarly we, as a species, owe our lives to Mother Nature. And we must protect it.

But most of our parents are so occupied with survival and daily chores that the issue of environmental health is never brought up. How I wish I would have gone green a long time ago had my parents inculcated these values in me.

2. Respect the underprivileged

I never liked when my mother gave me special treatment and ill-treated the destitute coming to our home to beg for food or clothes.

Around 4 years ago when I was at home studying for the government services examination, I used to tutor underprivileged kids from our locality in our home.

And as I am wont to do, I would pat them on the back or take them in my arms. Yes, I agree their clothes were dirty and their hairs were a mess but that doesn’t mean that we should treat them as untouchables.

I would never want my kids to do that to anybody.

3. Live sustainably

My father had built two houses in his lifetime. We are living in the latest one he built a few years ago. Lakhs of rupees were spent on showing off — using trendy wall tiles, in-fashion bathroom fittings, the latest furniture, and accessories.

But not a single rupee was spent on building the home eco-friendly. No provision for rainwater harvesting, no provision to reuse water, no provision to harness solar energy, they didn’t even purchase s $15 compartmentalized dustbin for waste segregation until I force-feed them with it.

4. Practice Minimalism

Each year my parents spend a lot on clothes alone. I don’t know what satisfaction or validation they want to get buying new clothes every now and then.

Minimalism and its impact on our and planet’s well-being is something that I learned myself.

5. Not giving a damn about society and rituals

My parents, especially my mother, are so concerned with what the people will say. They are living such a dull and monotonous life just because of the fear of society. Following the rituals blindly makes no sense in these changing times.

The thing is that they are toeing the line — what they see everyone around them doing, they do the same mindlessly without applying their own brains.

But I wish to thank existence or destiny that I have been able to open up my eyes by reading books, watching documentaries and other soul-stirring videos online, and get closer to the truth.

6. Not care about religion & caste.

Why can’t they understand that we are humans first and then a Hindu or a Muslim or a Christian! The differentiation based on religion is so deep-rooted that people, including my parents, would go to any length to keep us away from mixing with Muslims.

Only if my parents taught me to treat every human being equally irrespective of caste, color, or religion, I would not have found it difficult to have an all-inclusive mindset.

I will happily allow my child to marry a Muslim and treat him/her like any other person.

Conclusion

What happens with most of us is that when we love someone completely, we forget to criticize or correct the person even if he/she is wrong and when we hate someone totally we don’t give credit to the person where it’s due.

Love and hate both are different sides of the same coin and both of them make us blind, partial.

But I think I have done reasonably well to come out of biasedness and be able to sift black from white. A long way to go still.

I just hope that all of us open our eyes and start thinking analytically. There is no point in imitating what others are doing. Use your own mind.