On Tue, Mar 27, 2012 at 7:22 PM, Biju Chacko <biju.cha...@gmail.com> wrote:
> On Tue, Mar 27, 2012 at 6:49 PM, Chetan Nagendra <che...@nagster.org> > wrote: > > Appalled by the parents mentioned in the article. Gross negligence by any > > standards. Why have kids in the first place? > > Every couple of months we go through a panic stricken routine of > trying to replace our nanny. I've been lucky enough to be working for > relatively understanding employers who've tolerated weeks of working > from home. Chetan....it's not that simple as 'having kids' or 'not'.....nor can we judge those who have to let others take care of their children, day or night (or both). In an ideal world, one, or the other, or both, parents could devote the whole time to the raising of the children...but real life is not like that. In this, as in almost everything, we walk the fine line of major compromise between a lot of things. Torn by guilt at the ways in which we accomodate our realities, and yet trying to do our best, we pursue our careers, bring up our children, take care of our parents...we make our own ways through the maze of living. My grand-daughter spends the whole day in day care, and it was because I "contracted" with my daughter to take care of her at home for a year, that she was able to stay at home until she was past a year old. Otherwise, there would have been no alternative. And though it hurt to put a one-year-old in day care...I see children as young as four weeks in day care...and they must, I have to say, seem none the worse for it...at least in the day care I am talking about. One of the parents giving up the job is not, as Biju says, an option. And what happens if there is a divorce or death? Can one parent manage a job and the children alone? Those of us who are lucky enough to be able to care for our children at home...or have parents to help...we have to appreciate our luck, that's all. D.
