Morality vs. Law
Well this is sure an age old debate; for some issues the line is as stark as the goal line in a football match, for some its invisible but there, ready to spark when crossed like a Lakshman Rekha. The topic came to my mind after reading the saturday TOI article which read "Look after your folks, or go to jail", the article still had the cheeky nuances of legal lingua franca with a sub heading "Children may be disinherited if parents complain of neglect". I will come at the cheeky part later on.
So; I warp up the time machine, the gauge reads +50, and here I am a seventy year old nut rumbling around my house poking, sitting and lazying around the verandah and dam-thud, one day I get to know the cute little things I nurtured up to be so big have submitted me an ultimatum to move from the premises. Ammmpph! Whats wrong with this picture; it does not happen like this, nope, it so happens that, this old man had been getting twinkers from the moment he got retired, these kids had been the little devils parading around each day and their squabbles, chides increase with each passing one and finally you get fed up and decide to pack and leave.
Scene II you have been sick like all mortals on this earth and by the time you reach fifty five your body has almost given up on you, you are bed ridden and been a liability to your kids, your own pension is sufficed in the medicine and they need to have an extra servant just to have you taken care of. Eventually your kid or his wife gets weary and cajole you (which is a much sweeter word; pushed) you to be shifted to an age old home.
So that’s how I end up in those dreary places where its not possible to befriend all, b'cause every second bed gets empty every fourth day, as they have had a calling. You pass in your left over days chirping with the birds, gawking at the sky, or wondering where did I go wrong. And one day you stop and think "maybe I ought to teach those brads a lesson in screwing up my life this way", now that I have "Parents and Senior Citizens Bill 2006". So I wake up early morning catch hold of a slimy shrink and sue my own kids. There is a small hearing and everybody lives happily after.
Daaamn, the script again slipped in those last scene ;). Most of the cases where children are neglecting their parents, the parents are themselves driven to seclusion/ alternate solution with continued haranguing/ bickering. Its their own way of seeking their peace of mind, blowing up a legal trumpet would not reconcile the differences or make a saint of a devil.
The reconciliation lies in understanding the problem; from that kids perspective who is no more a kid, sometimes as young parents people ignore their responsibility to their own parents, forgetting the circle repeats itself. But let not that be the only cause to change!
And the cheeky part I was talking about was the "Children may be disinherited if parents complain of neglect"; MAY; there is still a may hanging out, why should such a progeny be allowed to inherit anything when he shares no responsibility to his own kin.
But the bigger problem still remains, can such issues be reconciled via legal proceedings, but for the weary souls I guess this is the last refuge.
No wonder the old ones aren't celebrating yet!
So; I warp up the time machine, the gauge reads +50, and here I am a seventy year old nut rumbling around my house poking, sitting and lazying around the verandah and dam-thud, one day I get to know the cute little things I nurtured up to be so big have submitted me an ultimatum to move from the premises. Ammmpph! Whats wrong with this picture; it does not happen like this, nope, it so happens that, this old man had been getting twinkers from the moment he got retired, these kids had been the little devils parading around each day and their squabbles, chides increase with each passing one and finally you get fed up and decide to pack and leave.
Scene II you have been sick like all mortals on this earth and by the time you reach fifty five your body has almost given up on you, you are bed ridden and been a liability to your kids, your own pension is sufficed in the medicine and they need to have an extra servant just to have you taken care of. Eventually your kid or his wife gets weary and cajole you (which is a much sweeter word; pushed) you to be shifted to an age old home.
So that’s how I end up in those dreary places where its not possible to befriend all, b'cause every second bed gets empty every fourth day, as they have had a calling. You pass in your left over days chirping with the birds, gawking at the sky, or wondering where did I go wrong. And one day you stop and think "maybe I ought to teach those brads a lesson in screwing up my life this way", now that I have "Parents and Senior Citizens Bill 2006". So I wake up early morning catch hold of a slimy shrink and sue my own kids. There is a small hearing and everybody lives happily after.
Daaamn, the script again slipped in those last scene ;). Most of the cases where children are neglecting their parents, the parents are themselves driven to seclusion/ alternate solution with continued haranguing/ bickering. Its their own way of seeking their peace of mind, blowing up a legal trumpet would not reconcile the differences or make a saint of a devil.
The reconciliation lies in understanding the problem; from that kids perspective who is no more a kid, sometimes as young parents people ignore their responsibility to their own parents, forgetting the circle repeats itself. But let not that be the only cause to change!
And the cheeky part I was talking about was the "Children may be disinherited if parents complain of neglect"; MAY; there is still a may hanging out, why should such a progeny be allowed to inherit anything when he shares no responsibility to his own kin.
But the bigger problem still remains, can such issues be reconciled via legal proceedings, but for the weary souls I guess this is the last refuge.
No wonder the old ones aren't celebrating yet!
posted by Rebus at 10/02/2006 05:25:00 PM
1 Comments:
This post reminds me of the scene from Lage Raho...
Never knew this law existed. Good for the oldies! But also wondering...what about aged folks who dont have assets to pass on...the law also wont be on their side!
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