Generational Conflicts free essay sample

In an ideal world, parents or grand-parents would be able to communicate with their children because both would be able to learn a lot from each other. In this world, there is a generational gap between offspring and parent. The values taught today are far different from the values taught yester-year, especially in an Asian household. What is even more difficult for older generations to comprehend is the values American-raised children have over the values in Asia. In 1985, my family relocated to the U. S. from Thailand. Since the United States was the land of opportunity, my father wanted to make sure we had everything we needed to become successful. He worked hard for his business, our chinese restaurant, and made sure our family never lacked for money, clothing, or shelter. We werent rich by any means but we were able to survive. The five of us siblings, four girls and one boy, never had to do chores as long as we focused on school and kept up our grades, To my father, education was the stepping stone to success so we needed to be focused. We will write a custom essay sample on Generational Conflicts or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page He was very broad-minded for an Asian man at that time. My grand-parents on the other-hand were very closed-minded. They believed that my fathers methods of education first and no chores, was a gateway to us turning into lazy slobs and worthless adults.. In Laos, the girls of the family had to learn to cook and clean at a very young age, starting at the age of four. The men were usually catered to and the boys did not have to do anything at all. Women were literally treated as servants and the men were the head of the household and held all the power. Since my fathers way of thinking was so different from my grand-parents, they got into a lot of different arguments, and have become estranged several times. One of the biggest fights they had was when I was fifteen-years old. I became a young mother at the age of fifteen, and even though I knew I disappointed my dad greatly, he stood by my side. As a young mother, my grand-parents wanted me to marry my childs father. In the old country, any woman who had a child with a man, had to marry that man. If they didnt, they were shunned. My father on the other hand, insisted I was too young. I was a teenager and made a mistake but that didnt mean I should continue making more mistakes by marrying the boy. He wanted me to have other opportunities, to not let single motherhood hold me back from achieving anything, whether it was an education, or finding the right relationship before marriage. He said that the decision would be ours in the future if we decided we wanted to get married versus having a marriage forced on us. The estrangement was tense and lasted for several years. It was truly very sad. I have a cousin who had a child around the same time I did. We were both fifteen. Her child was one month older than my son. However, she married the father of her baby not long after her little girl was born. She lived in Sacramento and my grand-parents made several visits to see the baby. We only lived a few blocks away from them and they never tried to come visit. The first time they saw my son was when he was already five years old. It always hurts when there is a conflict between parent and child. I am so grateful my dad is the way he is. Eventually, my grand-parents realized they were wrong. It wasnt because of anything they learned in the U. S. or their values changing, it was because they were getting older. They didnt want any estrangement in case one of them died. Eventually, they realized family came first. Unfortunately, generational conflicts between old values and new values are very hard to resolve. Each generation has their values and beliefs instilled in them from an early age. Occasionally, a child will be born who was taught old values but is able to challenge it. When you have a modern thinker challenge old views, a lot of conflict can arise and only time can tell if there will be change in the older generations views.