Leaving home: Clouded judgement, or a blessing in disguise?

A child's walk towards independence is a bold move. Why must we be close-minded and call it an attention-seeking...

A friend wrote a blog recently about his accidental encounter with journalism where he mentioned he had moved out of his house because he had developed some differences with his mother.

The only thing most readers took away from that entire piece was what could have possibly gone so wrong that the ‘poor guy had to turn away from his family’.

Drama – it’s what we crave. Without it, life just seems so bland.

Several comments on his post said the same thing, “Try making up with your family,” and so on. No one focused on the fact that the move had actually done him some good. He’s learning responsibility the best possible way it can be taught – first hand.

So why can’t we just applaud him for that?

Because, in our society, we can’t come to terms with the fact that a child would leave his home at will. It’s so unacceptable, tragic even, that it must be undone at once.

I’m no liberal ‘fundo’ fighting for my peers’ right to freedom – far from it, in fact.

If I had a kid who moved out just because we had a disagreement, I’d probably be pretty devastated too. But why is it so difficult for us to accept a healthy decision when we feel it’s not conforming to our norms? Why are we so close-minded, that any move a child makes towards his/her independence, seems nothing more than an act of pure attention-seeking rebellion?

I’m not endorsing a walk-out every time we have a tiff with our parents, but I do believe that it isn’t entirely absurd either.

I’ve seen two friends walk away from their homes in a course of two months, and yes it’s frightening to think that it might just end up becoming a cultural trend. However, in all honesty, they’re both better men for it.

So I suppose it may seem like a rude awakening, but let’s not dismiss the notion just yet.