Parents, a comparative study.

I'm back, Brussels was great. I went there with my mother to visit an old family friend, not that she's old, of course, but she's known me since I was born, so she is indeed an old family friend, and the mother of my oldest friend (who has also known me since I was born).

Unimportant as those facts are, they may help you understand the following entry: Parents, a comparative study.

Spanish parents are different. If anyone has been reading my blog, either on Blogger or Facebook, you may have seen me claim Spain is different. So true. Parents are no exception. Spanish parents are particularly protective of their children. I guess it has a lot to do with the fact that spanish children stay home longer than many other young people all over the world, and the more I see of the world the more I believe my own theory. Spanish parents worry over three basic needs and will always ask three questions when their kids phone them from wherever they are:

1.- Where are you?

2.- Are you warm enough?

3.- What have you eaten?

Cold and food are the greatest worries of spanish parents, as long as their kids are warm and well fed they are happy. I think it has to do with the worries of the previous generation. Our grandparents lived a civil war and lacked the basics for a long while. They worried over those basics and taught their children (today's parents) to worry over the same things.

Mothers are even more special. In the last few days I've been making a deeper study on my understanding of Spanish moms. And I have made some very interesting findings: When Spanish moms gather they always repeat 3 behavioral patterns:

1.- Moms will always share cooking recipies. I strongly believe that's one of the reasons why Spanish food is so rich and delicious.

2.- Moms will always talk about their kids achievements, by achievements I mean "I remember when my daughter burned a curtain with a hair drier" or "My daughter doesn't even know how to turn on the washing machine".

And

3.- If moms go to a bar or a restaurant they will always fight over who pays the bill. Paying is a victory (I never understood why).

These facts, added to the first three questions pretty much define what spanish parents are like. I do wonder if these facts are closely related to the fact that they are Spanish and Parents or if it has to do exclusively with the genes that activate with parenthood (and here I beg scientists to forgive me, but I do have the feeling some of our genes activate only after having children, if that's possible).

Trying to answer my own questions I found a video on youtube that was quite enlighting. I add the link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ak9xHCdrIdE

After watching it three times in a row I showed said video to my mom. I couldn't stop laughing, the video is a marterpiece, a work of art, plain hilarious. But my mom had another approach, no wonder, she is, after all, a mom. She did not laugh, all she pointed out was that she would have taken the kid to the hospital at once, whatever anesthesia he was given at the dentist it was seriously affecting his brain. She even made me feel bad for not worrying about David's condition. I am a very selfish being.

Then today something else happened. My sister's been given the chance to do a three-month research abroad. Her options are Miami, Montreal and the Netherlands. When I heard her options I instantly voted for Miami. My mom? She just asked: Don't you have any other option much closer? I looked at her outraged: Closer? If anything, she should go somewhere even further.

Such is life, such are Spanish parents.