Respecting Elders Starts From Home

Treating elders with respect is a significant part of life skills. Antara Pandit shares how, through meaningful conversations with children, parents can help them understand the importance of respect

If they respect you, respect them. If they disrespect you, you still respect them. Do not allow the actions of others to decrease your good manners, because you represent yourself, not others.’– Mohammad Zeyara

I have often heard many elders who are a product of the ‘baby boomers’ generation (born between 1946 and 1954) as well as those before and after, talk about why vital life skills like kindness, empathy, respect, gratitude and so on, need to be taught today. Being a woman and mother from the millennial generation, do I agree with this? Yes, wholeheartedly! Why does it seem like these skills came naturally to our preceding generations even during their childhood, while in today’s world, these life skills have to be excavated from within people? We are born with the capacity and ability to be humane. As a part of parenting 101, growing up, we were all raised to be kind and respectful to others. However, our experiences shape us, and somewhere along the way, this capacity to exhibit qualities that make us humane diminishes. With our children growing up in a world that is overwhelmed by strife and screaming out loud for compassion, respect, and empathy, how do we ensure that they do not lose themselves and forget the qualities that make them good human beings?