“Empathetic and grateful kids feel gratitude even if parents doesn’t want them to feel indebted.”
Absolutely. But I sure hope my DD isn’t (as the author catastrophizes) “driven to work by the knowledge that… if I failed to earn scholarships it would be the financial equivalent of burning down my parents’ home”.
DD wants to show me gratitude? I’d tell her to pay it forward… do what she can to pay for her child/ren’s education like my parents paid for mine, and I am now paying for hers. However, if she fails to earn scholarships, I will in no way consider it to be the financial equivalent of her burning the Berkshire Hathaway B-share certificates (that DH & I also worked 10+ years to accrue and plan to sell to pay for her education). JMHO.