2017; On Parents~

Bismillah...

7 years after I graduated, most of my friends are already expecting their third child. And it's pretty normal to see my friends captioning their children's pictures with "Don't grow up too fast..."

Well, this is not a post about my desire to become a parent myself or anything. It's just that recently I had some conversation with my cousin and some friends about our parents..

"You know, my mom terasa betul bila I nda mau ia bayarkan makanan..."
*You know, my mom was so upset when I didn't want her to pay for our food (at a restaurant)*

"Aku stress betul bapa ku bagi hadiah yang nda di minta ni..."
*I'm so stressed that my dad gave me a gift that I didn't ask for*

"Bukan style aku bha ni mo meminta minta dari bapaku pulak.."
*I'm not the kind who ask money from my dad*

As we grow we actually don't want to trouble our parents that much anymore and tried to be independent. We try our best to settle our own problems, pay our bills and pay for their necessities as well. When I just started working, not being able to contribute to my parents can cause me a lot of stress. I feel so obliged to pay my 'debt'.

But I realized that even though we have turned into an adult who is able to manage our own life, our parents actually haven't lost their parenting instinct. I guess, it gives them peace of mind that we have grown so well. But deep down, they still want to feel they are needed.

It disturbed me at first when my Dad buy breakfast for me everyday, when the Milo jar is already refilled after I've just bought one because I'm always the one who finished it, when I keep getting my favourite Ayam Penyet even when I didn't ask for it, when I woke up late and my favorite Tapai and Rojak Johor is already served on the table etc etc...

I thought, I don't want to be treated like a kid anymore because it's my turn to give back.  And when I'm given something that I don't want at that given time, it will end up wasted. I tried to tell them that it's not necessary but the pampering continues~

After I noticed this pattern, I'm guessing that they just want to feel that they are still needed. Still a big part of their child's life although the child no longer fills them with the details of their life as much as before like in school

"Mommy, tadi kan si N kena marah cikgu~"

or ask them curious questions

"Kenapa rumah nenek ni nda cat?"

So these days, to avoid wastage, I'll come up with my wishlist beforehand. And my wishlist has always been FOOD...

And one more thing that I think that is very important to parents besides seeing their child land a good job and live a comfortable life is.... to see their child still embracing the good moral and spiritual values that they've instilled~