To be or not to be (parents) is the question
Memories are fickle minded, they leave you for years only to haunt you suddenly from a dark corner or from a sunny window with a bright smile. I was engrossed in a spread sheet in office when my cell phone rang it was an international number so I picked it up. S was on other side, it took me some time to put two plus two and then the curtains on sunny windows opened.
S and V were in my team when I worked in Bombay. She a Sindhi with ¼ Bohri blood, and he a Christian from Kerala raised in amchi Mumbai. Typical boy meets girl and they live happily ever after kind of stuff after a mandatory opposition from both the families.
Long story short we stopped being colleagues after we changed jobs but stayed in touch, and they still call some time to enquire about the kids and stuff. A few years ago they moved to Europe for his job, she decided to follow and also got a job in the same city after some time. Both of them are doing well in their respective careers and were planning to have kids, but were not sure if they are ready to take responsibility.
This is what the call was about, with both of them in high pressure jobs in a foreign country with no family support, he was wondering if they will be able to do justice to the kid? I was wondering what to say and then he said something that kind of summarizes the changing mindset of Indian couples.
“We don’t want to bring a kid in this world and then not provide proper upbringing and give time to her, I was thinking to first have a pet and see if we do justice to him and then only decide if we will be dedicated parents or not” Happy at the maturity he was showing but also a little sad at the clinical precision I just mumbled a few things which basically meant yes, not a good idea to bring a kid in this world if you will not be able to devote time to her.
Trying with a pet seems like a good idea to know how dedicated you will be, now the animal rights group may scream hoarse that why to put a pet through neglect if you are not sure, but hey when the choice is between a kid and a man’s best friend to neglect I will neglect a friend as a true friend has no expectations from you. He is there for you when you need him as well as when you want him to get lost and leave you alone.
Last heard they were featured in a Hungarian news paper for a community initiative to clean after the dog has done his thing on the pavement.
I am sure one day they will make great parents and raise wonderful kids. Till then man’s best friend is getting all the love and affection in the world.
Sasha and Prasad Np are proud parents of 2 girls whom they fondly call Princess (11 yrs in Feb 13) and Pinkette (4 yrs next month). He wears many hats after taking a break from being corner office critter for a long time. He is now entrepreneur, blogger, photographer, traveler and an investor in startups with unique concepts. He blogs at Desi Traveler, and can be reached at Facebook and Twitter.
