Children cling to their parents when they are young. The parent gets a dose of pleasure because he feels important. The parent feels nice that he can provide something that the child needs. The parent exercises control over the child. And he feels powerful.
He sometimes punishes the child when he does something he does not like. And is happy to see that that his child has learnt some life lessons.
A few years later. When the child is grown. The parent clings to the child. The parent needs the child more than the child needs him.
The child does the exact same thing that the parent did to him. The roles are reversed.
Now, the parent is on the other side. The receiving end. And the things he receives from his grown child are pain and misery.
The child is an addict. The child is a vagabond. The child becomes wayward. The child never calls. The child is irresponsible. This creates untold anguish to the parent.
There is no need to blame the parent. There is no need to say that the parent did not have good parenting skills. In fact, the parent did his best. The parent did what he did out of good intentions.
But as life would have it, good intentions are not necessarily rewarded with good outcomes.
One can indeed receive a slap in the face for trying to help.
One can get a kick in the teeth as a reward for his good deeds.
And that’s a lesson he forgot to teach his child.
Life is life
Fabio