We love them; we just don’t always like them.
We have a strange, bittersweet relationship with our parents. Which is why, as kids we didn’t hang out or really talk to them about much.
But, as we grow older, so do they. And we realise that there’s so much left unsaid and unheard, on both sides of the relationship.
So, let’s start having more conscious conversations with our parents because life is too short and they aren’t getting younger.
1. About being able to manage financially without seeking their help.
You don’t have to tell them your salary breakup, or your bank balance. But, you should be able to let them know whether or not you’re in a position to sustain yourself in life, long after they’re not around.
2. About their property and being responsible enough to take care of the legalities.
We don’t realise how, the older we get, the more affected we are by the situations in our parents’ house; especially when we live away from them. And we don’t get to see the problems that maybe we could help tackle if we knew better.
3. About their mental health issues, especially as they age and/or lose a partner.
Mental health has become an increasingly important conversation to have; especially with your parents. You never know who is suffering, especially so when your parents are the ones in question.
4. About making their own health a priority.
While as kids, it was like our parents’ prerogative to know if we were unwell or needed a routine check-up, as adults, it becomes our prerogative to do that for them, too.
5. About their plans of retirement and how they feel about life post retirement.
It’s that time in their lives when your parents are nearing their retirement age. And after all the hard-earned money and work they’ve put in to give you the life you wanted, it’s time to return the favour.
6. About ensuring that they have a happy and peaceful life post their retirement.
Sure, our parents have their own life savings to fall back on post-retirement. But, that doesn’t mean we can’t contribute to their well being. After all, they were there for us when we didn’t have a job, any money and any savings to fall back on.
7. About having a health insurance in place for them even if they think they don’t need it.
Our parents are usually better planners than we ever will be. But, every now and then, we need to remind them that their health is just as important to us as everything else they do.
8. About being someone they can fall back on in case of emergencies that come up.
Life can be unpredictable. Nothing always works out the way we plan it. And even if our parents have a plan in place that may never go wrong, we should always be there to ensure them that even if it did, you’ve go their backs – just like they did for you.
9. About what lies ahead for you and your parents in the near future.
Sure, we’ve got a plan in place for ourselves, too. But, how and where do our parents fit into that plan?
10. About your parents’ role in finding and marrying ‘the one’.
And if at all we do find that someone to spend the rest of our lives with, we want out parents to know that they will continue to remain supremely important to us, no matter what.
11. About having kids of your own and wanting your parents around when you do.
If at some point, you do decide to have kids, you realise how important a role your parents play in the upbringing of their own child’s child.
12. About the fear of the inevitable and how to cope with it.
No one wants to talk about the death of a parent. But, unfortunately, it’s the one thing that remains constant in this life. There will come a day when your parents may not be around anymore.
13. About expressing your feelings even when it’s the hardest thing to do.
With our parents, somehow, we always took for granted the words that remained unsaid. Maybe we weren’t the most expressive when it came to being emotional with them. But, there won’t always be a tomorrow.