Working class

its a reason to be grateful to parents who come from the working class of craftsman doing bespoke tailoring but they instill strong family values.the next door neighbour opened a mahjong den to earn more money but if we kids even tried to gamble or learn mahjong or cards,all hell broke loose if mom found out from her spies.the rotan lashing and beating is a painful lesson any of us will never forget. she taught you should only get what you deserve or earn it yourself so when i lusted after the red sweater of my trendy neighbour and out of generosity,she gifted it to me,mom was mad when she found out.dont covet what others have,you have to work hard to deserve it.so she made me give it back although i love the red sweater. then to get pocket money,i gave tuition to younger kids or work as a factory hand in my aunts sausage factory which was noisy and hot with big meat grinder and ovens.after the sausage came out of the factory,we cut the required length,hand tied it in bunches and packed and sorted them into different grades.i love the special premium with rose wine or mei kwei lo. when festivity came,we helped parents to stitch hem of trousers,iron shirts and sewed buttons on cuffs as the orders were overwhelming. i think ive passed on those lessons to Jun when i asked him to earn pocket money by washing the car,giving me foot rub or working in the pet shop or cash converters to earn his pocket money.now hes too frugal until his underwear and t shirts are torn and tattered like a homeless beggar.i wanna use them as rags to mop the floor. as a teacher,it breaks my heart to see young people self destruct.some take the easy way out and join youth gangs to extort protection money and take the easy way out to make money.they are willing to push drugs like pill kuda or ketamine to fellow classmates to earn big bucks to buy luxury goods or lure fella girl classmates by supplying free drugs and pimping them to work as sex workers once they are addicted.when young people go on path of r self destruction,its hard to wean them from bad influence of peer pressure of power and easy money.i always advised my students to work hard coz although the labour is bitter but the fruit is sweet.the money that is easy to come is easy to go.at the lower level,its corruption through violent means but for white collar crime,its corruption through bribery,fraud and CBT.so the rot starts from the top before it spreads to the bottom and the whole societal framework collapse sooner or later when the foundation is weakened by termites eating away at it from top to bottom.the road to hell is paved with good intentions so when we overprotect the young and give them a sense of self entitlement and a privileged life,its gonna set them on a path of self destruction sooner or later