Entitled parents are all around us, always expecting the most out of everyone else. Whether it’s for babysitters to look after their children for free or always excusing their kid’s terrible behavior, they tend to drag other people into these annoying situations as well.
A man on TikTok shared an exasperating experience with his relatives, who tried to get him to look after their 5 children while they went on vacation without even asking for his permission first.
More info: TikTok
A guy reached out for advice after his cousin and said cousin's wife informed him about their trip to Thailand and expected him to babysit their 5 kids without even asking
Image credits: Andy Kuzma (not the actual photo)
“Call me crazy, but I think if you have kids, you should be the one in charge of them”
“My cousin and his wife, the ones who have six kids, and constantly leave them with me, because they need a ‘break,’ have decided that they’re going to Thailand. I [said], ‘wasn’t that really expensive to book eight tickets for all of you to go?’ They [said], ‘what are you talking about? We’re gonna leave them with you because you work from home.’”
“And I [replied], ‘you’re going to leave all your kids with me?’ They [said], ‘We’re taking the baby. But otherwise, yeah. But don't worry, not to worry because it’s summer holidays when they’re going so they don't have to, I don't have to take them to school or anything.’”
Image credits: @unwedvampire
“And I’m just thinking, I do work from home. Just because I’m at home doesn't mean I don't work”
“I [said] ‘what if I want to go on holiday in summer? What am I going to do with them?’ And they [replied], ‘don't be selfish. You know how hard it is for us. We can never get any sleep.’ That's not my problem. And need I remind you guys the last time they were here, they're menaces, by the way, they're not, they're not very well home-trained. So dealing with that, it's just a headache in itself.”
“This is why I didn't have kids. And they also called my mum and [said], ‘he's not being cooperative. He's not being considerate. He's not, he's just being selfish.’ So now my mum's on my case, ‘oh my God, just do this as a favor. You work from home, so it's fine for you.’ If anyone has any advice, that would be greatly appreciated.”
Image credits: Asad Photo Maldives (not the actual photo)
Watch the original video here
The man could not believe that his relatives presumed that he would babysit their kids just because he worked from home and that they had the audacity to complain to his mom about him
A guy on TikTok shared why he feels parents should take responsibility for their kids if they decide to have them and not expect other people to pick up the slack. He mentioned that his cousin and his wife decided to leave their 5 kids with him and only take their baby along while they went on vacation. The poster was obviously angered by the decision.
The guy also said that the children were not well-behaved, and he would struggle to look after them whenever he babysat. He added, “This is why I didn’t have kids.” But the parents did not side with the man, which is why he reached out to netizens for help and advice. Many people often assume that childfree folks have a lot of time on their hands and hence may take advantage of the fact.
Bored Panda interviewed Veronica and Rick, the authors of The Childfree Connection page. They mentioned that they are on a mission to connect childfree people around the world and guide the community into living their most fulfilled lives. They shared that “there is a general assumption that childfree people have extra time. Although for many, this can be true, it does not offer outsiders a free pass to hijack whatever time is available.”
Veronica and Rick mentioned the assumptions that people have about childfree folks, stating that, “they are ‘expected’ to pick up the slack in the workplace or with family members because they don’t have the built-in child-caring excuse. This discrepancy comes down to a lack of mutual respect for the different lifestyles."
"Society does not question parents on whether they are managing their time effectively but childfree people are questioned as to why they wouldn’t offer up their free time for anyone at any time. Neither side should be questioned because ultimately, we just don’t know what is happening behind closed doors,” they added.
Image credits: Javon Swaby (not the actual photo)
According to a survey of childfree people, it was observed that they faced discrimination in the workplace with 63% being denied time off, 69% having to work overtime, and 70% being given a greater workload. Studies on voluntarily childfree people found that people often believe that they are “selfish, cold, and materialistic.”
Veronica and Rick also mentioned that “another assumption is childfree people lack responsibility because all we do is jet-set and chill. Although we encourage celebration of our lifestyle and soak in the deliciousness of our choice, our lives are just as layered and complicated as those with kids."
"The irony of this assumption is that some childfree people have so much responsibility already. One of the reasons they don’t want kids is because they are overwhelmed with the weight that they are already carrying,” they also added. Just like the poster shared in his video, even though he worked from home and chose not to have children, that did not mean his cousin could just force babysitting duties on to him.
Veronica shared her experience as a childfree woman, saying: “while I received a barrage of judgment and criticism about my ‘selfish’ choice, his friends high fived him for ‘dodging a bullet.’ As a couple, though, we tend to be placed under the umbrella of all these false assumptions."
"Since the assumption of selfishness and the accusation of ‘something is wrong with you’ mainly falls on women, I created a 6-week program [for] women who are stuck in the decision to (potentially) not have kids due to the fears, anxiety and judgement from outside sources,” she shared.
Let’s hope the couple had so many kids because of positive emotions, but they can't expect everyone to feel the same way. As is evident from the video’s popularity, many people share the same sentiment as the TikToker, and they don't see kids being a part of their lifestyle. Among the 34k comments, people came up with witty and hilarious ideas for him to get back at the couple and to set boundaries in the future. How would you have handled such entitled parents? Let us know your thoughts on this situation.
The poster received a lot of support, and some people even felt that he should make his mother take up the babysitting duties since she was siding with his relatives
