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Why Are So Many Boomer Parents Ignoring Their Grandkids?
A look at the modern parenting struggle
I grew up in England in the 1980s, right at the tail end of the years that define one of the most independent generations: Generation X.
Generation X (or Gen X) refers to those born between 1965 and 1980 — though some include the early ’80s babies, too. We’re often called “latch-key kids” because many of us came home to empty houses, with both parents working or otherwise occupied.
Wedged between the larger Baby Boomer generation and the younger, tech-savvy Millennials, Gen X is a bit of a middle child — often overlooked, fiercely independent, and quietly self-reliant.
My grandparents were always there
When I was a kid, my dad worked full-time as a mechanical engineer at a local car company, and my mum worked part-time as a chiropodist.
I don’t remember spending much time with them during the day. Most evenings after school, I was outside, playing with my siblings or friends.
But my grandparents were always around.
Every Wednesday after school, we would go to their house for tea, allowing my parents time as a couple.
