Grandma with a baby, is it a love or a responsibility?

Mondo Parenting Updated on 2024-02-21

In a corner of the bustling city, Grandma Zhao and her grandson Xiao Ming share an ordinary and warm life.

Because Xiao Ming's parents are busy with their professional careers and frequently travel on business, the burden of taking care of the children naturally falls on Grandma Zhao's hands.

Every day from morning to night, Grandma Zhao takes care of Xiao Ming meticulously, although the schedule is full, she is never tired of it. In her heart, Xiao Ming is the center of life.

However, there is an opinion circulating in the community that makes Grandma Zhao fall into deep thought: "Grandma is not obliged to take the baby". This concept holds that the elderly help their children to take care of their children out of deep family affection and selfless love, and are not the duty stipulated by law. This made Grandma Zhao wonder, could it be that her careful care of Xiao Ming was just out of non-coercive emotion?

Recalling her growing up, Grandma Zhao's mother also single-handedly pulled her up, never mentioning the statement that "grandma is not obliged to take the baby", but silently assumed the responsibility of parenting. Now as a grandmother, Grandma Zhao feels a little ironic when she hears such a point of view.

Grandma Zhao is well aware of the fast-paced modern society and the huge pressure on young people to work, and they work hard to create better living conditions for their children. But that doesn't mean young families don't need the help of their elders. If the elderly have the ability and time, it is normal for them to help take care of their grandchildren, because family affection is a kind of mutual care and giving.

In real life, family conflicts caused by "grandma has no obligation to take the baby" are not uncommon, and the originally close and harmonious families have become distant or even turned against each other. This made Grandma Zhao even more convinced that this view is not absolutely reasonable.

So, Grandma Zhao decided to stand up and share her insights in the community, emphasizing that "as the elderly, we have our own life and entertainment needs, but when the children need us, it is natural to lend a hand." ”

Grandma Zhao's views gradually gained more recognition and support, and everyone began to realize that treating family affection as a burden or obligation is a desecration of emotional bonds, and we should cherish and maintain this emotional connection that comes from the bloodline.

Under the care of Grandma Zhao, Xiao Ming thrived, he deeply realized his grandmother's selfless love for him, and learned to be grateful and reciprocate. At the same time, the neighbor Sister Guan is facing retirement, and her daughter and son-in-law want her to help take care of the children, but Guan insists that she has no obligation to fulfill her childcare responsibilities on their behalf.

Studies have pointed out that long-term care of young children may have negative effects on the mental and physical health of the elderly, such as headaches, forgetfulness, irritability, etc., and even induce cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Based on this, some experts have suggested that grandmothers are not legally obligated to take care of their children, which is to protect the health rights and interests of the elderly.

At the same time, with the progress of society and the development of educational concepts, many grandparents may find it difficult to adapt to modern parenting styles, and their participation can sometimes hinder children's independence and self-growth.

Despite this, it is still common for grandparents to take care of their children on their behalf, mainly because many young families are unable to cope with the burden of childcare on their own due to the pressure of work and the high cost of living.

In the face of the view that "grandma is not obliged to take care of the baby", we need to face up to the real problem and actively seek new solutions. For example, companies can provide more humane welfare policies and set up in-house nurseries so that parents can feel at ease and leave their children in the hands of professional childcare staff; ** We can also increase investment to build a more complete community childcare service system, so that children can get a good education while reducing the pressure of parents' work and life.

Grandma is not obliged to take care of the baby" is reasonable in a certain sense, it reminds us to respect the rights of the elderly, and at the same time urges us to start from reality, innovate parenting models, and jointly find new ways to solve parenting problems.

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