A current series of television commercials for an insurance company tells us they cannot help us from becoming our parents, but they can save us money on insurance.
You have probably seen these ads portraying people about 35 – 45 years-old exhibiting behaviors the ads convey as parental. The insulation is that we should ignore our parents because their ways are passé. Their time is passed and we are going forward as better, more intelligent people.
Hogwash!
Yes, that is an antiquated term, but seems appropriate.
There has always been a natural rejection of our parents’ generation when we are coming of age. As teenagers, we think our parents don’t understand anything. Fortunately, by the time we start families of our own and become mature adults, we realize the wisdom of our parents and seek out their advice. At least, that is how things used to work.
The discarding of past knowledge and wisdom has been canonized in our society. From seemingly innocent commercials mocking parents to education systems that demonize people from the past, we have become a culture that values nothing behind us. This of course recalls the old saying, ‘those who ignore history are doomed to repeat it.’ I will stop here on the larger topic of ignoring history and get back to parents.
My parents were definitely old school. Both came from the hills of Southern Ohio. Both were raised in Christian households. My mother’s father was a preacher and my father’s father a deacon. They lived sparse lives and were happy. And my family was no different. We moved to the city when I was three, so I am essentially a city boy. But the faith and work ethic of our Appalachian culture stayed with us.
We adored our caring mother and respected our loving but firm father. When we misbehaved, the discipline was deserved. When we achieved, so was the affirmation. We were also taught that it was parents who ran the household. Not us. If we wanted to participate in extra-curricular activities, we needed to earn the privilege.
I can still remember as a child sitting in our living room listening to my father and other adults talk about the issues of the day. I was always enthralled by the conversations. I may not have understood everything, but knew they were talking about important things. And because I sat and listened, I learned.
Mom and Dad
As I grew to be a teenager, my respect for my parents did not wane. The boundaries they established were for our own good and helped us to get through adolescence successfully. Not that I didn’t make mistakes. Some of which my parents never knew about. But when those mistakes were made, it was their love and wisdom that reminded me to seek out the right path in any eventually.
And I suppose that today I exhibit some behaviors I picked up from my parents. But isn’t that the point? Even animals know they need to learn from their parents to survive. Yes, we should build upon what we are taught to become better people. But without a solid foundation from our parents and their generation, we are building on shifting sands.
Exodus 20:12
Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.
Luke 6:48-49
They are like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete.”
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