| Your Children |
| Friday, 16 July 2010 16:21 | |||
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July 16, 2010— This month’s commentary is for those of you who are parents of one or more children.
It doesn’t matter how old they are today; they’re still your kids, and I hope you love them as much as I love ours. But having children is not the expected thing that it used to be, and this week, TIME Magazine’s cover story explored the idea of having one child only, as those in China have been encouraging for many years. When I was growing up it was said that having just one child was not a good thing, and a single kid with no sibling had a greater shot at developing problems. Lately that theory has been put to rest: The odds of birthing a child who later in life will turn out to be the anti-Christ are just as good with several as with one. And in case you’re wondering, I’m the oldest of two boys. Having fewer children today has become an economic issue. Raising a child in today’s iffy financial atmosphere is downright expensive. As recently as 15 years ago, provided the parents had to fork over the full amount, the annual cost of sending your youngster to a top 10 university in this country was about $15,000. That was tough enough, but today those numbers have more than doubled. Today, if your family produces a decent income but your child sits in the middle of his peers intelligence-wise, and isn’t a gifted athlete, sending him or her to Harvard or Stanford could cost as much as $40-45,000 per school year, which is just mind-boggling. Historically, bringing a child into the World and caring for him or her until they reach adulthood (and sometimes beyond) was not only the most natural thing in the world, it was necessary to propagate the species; it was an instrument of survival. That race is being easily won: Current estimates suggested the World’s population to be around 8 billion, and growing. A little more than a decade ago it was at 6 billion, which gives you an idea of how quickly this growth has been taking place. Prior to this period it took 20 years to kick up a billion; before that it took 30. In the U.S. we’re working with a number that’s a tad past 300 million at the moment. Twenty years ago we were at 250 million; 100 years ago there were slightly more than 90 million people living in this country. The numbers speak volumes. Although the World’s population will, due to improving medical conditions, more and better food growth and distribution and an increase in potable water, continue to grow, the so-called top-tier countries may actually begin to work against this trend. Time will tell. Meanwhile, most of us will continue doing the best we can to raise, love, protect and/or keep in touch with our children, depending on their ages, as we all move forward in this uncertain world. Loving your child and being there for them should be one of the primary things that keep us going. Next time you come in contact with yours, give them an extra hug and kiss — and if reachable only by phone, call frequently, and even if you have to leave a message, tell them how much you love them. And for the moment anyway, forget about the numbers.
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