Growing Up “Fine”: When Survival Is Mistaken for Success
Perhaps the more honest answer is this: two things can be true at once. A parent can try and still fail. A child can succeed and still hurt. Gratitude does not require silence, and understanding does not erase accountability. From the outside, it looked like a good home. A parent in a respectable government job. A schoolteacher—someone entrusted to shape young minds, teach discipline, patience, and good values. Stable income. Moral authority. In the eyes of relatives, neighbors, and society, this child was lucky. He was expected to grow up well, to be guided properly, to become someone stable and successful. And in many ways, he did. He finished tertiary education . He found a good job. His salary was above average. On paper, this is a success story—the kind often used to prove that hardship builds character. But memory is...