Cappy's Corner

Let me tell you a story about a young man. First a little background, I was sitting around having coffee with my best friend and we were on the subject of basic parenting. Which is pretty simple and easy to understand, a parents job is to support and protect their child. Support entails emotional support, love and financial support when they are growing to adulthood. My friend told me that any parent who thinks that they are somehow owed a payback from a child is basically nuts. A parents job does not get payback, if they have great children, who are great people that my friend is payback of the best kind. It is not like they asked to be born. Being a parent is not so easy, and it is riddled with mistakes, believe me I am the queen of big mistakes.

 

Back to the story of the young man. A wonderful, kind and talented young man was driving down the road in his car, when out of nowhere another car broadsides this young man. Of course, as luck or bad luck would have the person had no insurance. This means dealing with his own insurance company, who as a minor lead that responsibility to the parents. This young man was at doctors for his injuries and in the end, months and months later finds that he is permanently injured. In all the months that passed since the accident, this young man was without a car and spent much time just waiting for all doctor visits and insurance back and forth to be over.

 

In the end a settlement had been agreed upon, by the child's father. Whom, I might add, was hardly there as a parent when this wonderful young man was growing toward adulthood. This parent thinks for some reason that he is owed part of this settlement. I don't know what excuse any parent could use to take something away from a child who will be forever in pain, and as life goes on, even worse pain from the injuries of that day. What kind of person would profit from the injury of their own child. Who even thinks that way! What did this parent do to be entitled to any settlement on the back of a child, when this wonderful child was the injured party, who I am certain could use this small yet important settlement to get on with his young life. This young man will always be reminded of that day the car slammed into him and the day his parent took away the value of his injuries for himself.