Who has more problems to deal with? The young or adults?
Sunday, November 22, 2009
The following essay was my first attempt of writing an expository. This essay was written before my O level and was marked by my teacher. I have to admit that I still have a huge gap to improve on. Please feel free to leave a tag/comment, I would be glad to hear any improvements you may have for this.
P/S: My essay was a little off topic.
Cheers,
WeiTing
It was the first day of school. Being late for the first day, the primary one boy knew that this would definitely to leave any good impression on his teachers. He stood outside the school gate, in a dilemma. ‘Should I go home or should I enter?” Simple questions went whirling in his mind. It was not the consequences that he was afraid of, but which decision he should make.
Walking nonchalantly down the streets along the school was a man in his mid-forties. He had just been sacked by his boss and wondered how he was going to tell his wife and handle all the financial problems he had. He saw the boy and wondered how wonderful it would be if he were the boy. Needless to bother about the ‘adults’ problems’ he had to face now. Squatting outside the school, the boy looked at the man, and wondered how stupendous it would be if he were the man. Full of Freedom, money and carefree….
As cliché as it may sounds, ‘the grass is greener on the other side,’ this however has perfectly depicts what both adults and young thought of each other. Many young people go through thinking that no one else on earth has more problems than them. In contrast, the adults feel that they are the one who are facing more problems than the children. In my opinion, young people will have more problems to deal with, compared to what the adults are dealing with now.
Adults have huge responsibilities on a wide variety of issues, such as financial, friendship and Relationships. Parents, especially, are responsible to bring up their children well. Unquestionably, these are problems that one would dread to deal with.
In this 21st Century, most young’s future plan embraces being the top-notch in whatever he or she does, tuitions and even more tuitions has been planned even before they were born. This is to ensure that one is able to survive in this increasingly competitive meritocracy society. Undoubtedly, these are too much for a young to take. Adversely, the young may even need to learn to deal with the stress they will or experiencing. Although in a parent’s perspective, this would definitely benefit the child as the parent understands that in this practical world and competitive society, it’s all about knowledge and the good degree that one needs to compete with the rest. Therefore, all these are seen as preparation works for the child.
However, with a road that has been well-planned for a child, from kindergarten to university, will there be a time for the child to learn to make his or her own decisions that concern his or her own future? Frankly, I doubt so. What the parents have invested in all this while may have all gone into the drain as what they have nurtured, is an academically strong yet an indecisive person engaging in work that he or she is chasing goals or dreams that they are unsure of.
Furthermore, most families have dual incomes whereby both parents work to provide a more luxury and comfortable life for their children at the expense of the time the parents have with their children. Most parents would therefore give their children plenty of pocket money to compensate and make up the loss of time. Obliquely, the young people are being ‘taught’ that money can solve everything. Therefore, what the adults have brought up, are some mentally-crippled children who have no idea on making and mending human relationships.
In conclusion, to be shortsighted, adults do have more problems than young people. However, when the society is in the hands of the next generation, these young people will need to deal with more problems because they are mentally unprepared and not taught to be independent thinker and decision maker. They are unable to see and conceal the flaws in them, how would they be able to deal with larger problems such as emotions and finances? To make things worse, the cycle may revolves when our future generations are being ‘guided’ the same way as they were.
Changed on the 12th of December 2008