Under One Roof

A younger cousin of mine, Felice*, got pregnant when she turned 18. It was a big issue in the paternal side of the family that time. My cousin was banished from the ancestral house where her whole family lives. She can still come visit but she can’t live there anymore. My aunts, who shell out money to maintain the house and pay for its taxes, are still angry at her for being so selfish, prioritizing herself when she knows her family, especially her younger siblings, needs her.

And then another cousin is under fire because of teen pregnancy. This time around, my 17-year-old male cousin, Jed*, impregnated his 20-something girlfriend. In fact, the girl delivered a baby girl last 16th. Unlike Felice, Jed was not ostracized by the family for what happened. He and his parents and younger sibling kept it from every one. But you know how things like this get out no matter how hard you try to keep it under wraps. We, the cousins, all got wind of it and kept quiet about it. We wanted the adults to take care of the situation and not meddle with it. Surprisingly, the adults also kept quiet about it when they all knew what’s happening. And then when the girl popped the baby out, I heard that the aunts even gave Jed’s mom the money for the delivery. Say what?!?

I hate that there’s a double standard in dealing with this kind of situation in the family. Who’s the worse offender? I would like to think that Jed’s an even bigger offender than Felice. His parents both have no jobs to speak of. He’s a brat who can’t even trim his own nails and would always wail “Mom!” even in the slightest things like getting him a glass of water and finding his socks. He’s not yet even ready in any way to be a dad and he chose to ignore all of it to give in to his “urges”.

If my aunts and uncles forgave Jed, then they should have forgiven Felice as well. I just hate this double standards in dealing with teen pregnancy!

*Names changed.