Well well, it's been so long since I've last posted. I've successfully survived hell month at the office what with new students trying to get their bearings and the seemingly endless questions they have. The transition from high school to college or university is not the easiest in the world so I fully support students who bring their support group with them, be it parent, spouse SO friend, etc. What I hate seeing is an overly attentive and overbearing parent making choices for a new student. Vicarious living should only be done through magazines and movies people. Don't live your life through your child, furthermore don't try and believe you know better than they do what' they want to do.
Now there are a number of issues at work here, least of all the seventeen years or so worth of experience that many of these parents have with their children. I am sure in some cases I am merely seeing the image of innocence and frustration with a parent that a student wants me to see, when in fact he/she is the devil incarnate. There's the fact that the experience of coming to University is a big deal and the parent is not normally like this, but on that day they just seemed overbearing and will cool off later. There's the possibility that maybe all these years it really has been the parent doing all the work and the student is just a flighty bird who would end up on the streets doing coke if not strongly guided.
The flip side is that the parent has never learnt to let go of his/her image of what the precious baby should be, and truth be told, how many parents actually do completely discard their vision of what they want their children to be? Some are better than others at accepting that their children are separate beings and threat them as such. Some go businesslike, their child/ children is/are an investment which must be recouped with maximum profit and protected fiercely in a harsh environment. Looking at the bottom line what safer long term investment than medicine or law could you have? Sciences come third, Business fourth and the Arts......? well unless your 1 year plays the violin with his teeth then no. All of this accompanied by the attitude "mother knows best" is just too disgusting to watch. Maybe one day some kind of happy compromise can be reached. Maybe.
