Do you agree or disagree with the following statement?The extended family (grandparents, cousins ad uncles) is less important than it was in the past.Use specific reasons and examples to support your answers.

Back in my home country where I spent most of my childhood under the shadows of grandparents, uncles, aunts and other relatives is changed greatly that now where many do not even know who their extended family members are. Throughout my childhood, relatives have played an important part in bringing me up, that is being there when your parents are busy at work and enjoying time in family celebrations. Nowadays, things have changed as many choose to hire babysitters or do not really consider their distant relatives essential until some big occasion comes by.

When I was a child about the age of 6 to 9 years old, I have often seen my parents respect their parents to such an extent that they are part of every crucial decision being made. Keeping the name of a newly born to who is to marry who, every important decision has to be approved by my grandparents. And if they disapprove something then that is what must be done. Like my aunt who was getting married and she was in love with her college friend, my grandparents did not approve her to marry the one whom she loves, instead they chose someone in the family. And nobody objected their decision, including my aunt. Elders are considered to be knowledgeable than the others in the family and we remember one phrase repeated by all the relatives about them is that 'They know better'.

Extended family creates strong bond and keeps the family together. Back in my childhood, I have always been surrounded not only with my grandparents but also uncles, aunts and cousins. Whenever I had a birthday or any celebration we would go together to theme parks or picnics. My cousins and I always shared the same interest that is playing with dolls and we often visited each other for various reasons without any formal invitation. On the other hand, all the male cousins used to gather up every day to play cricket on the streets and spent quality time together. However, since I have grown up and moved to US, it feels like I have become distant from them. Not only because I have moved away but also when we all were living in the same country, I have noticed some disturbance among the family members that caused occasional rivalry among them. Since, my grandparents passed away, all the uncle and aunts started fighting for his will and which ended up in fights and complete separation between each other.

Nowadays, when I look around, I see very few families living as one joint family and most of them choose to live far to avoid superior control of elders on the family. There are many people who choose to live separately without the interference of elders, especially when they get married and the person coming into the family demands separation from the parents. This appears sad to me because I see many elder parents who spent their lives in old age homes or far apart from their loved ones because they are not wanted around by their own children. Their importance has shamefully decreased infront of their children. I always compare the time when I was young and spent my live in a joint family and respecting our elders and enjoyed with cousins with the time that we are living now, away from all the cousins and elders.

Children of today are being brought up to become independent from the age of 15, whereas, back when I was 15, I could not even imagine living alone without my parents. Decisions are independently being made without the consent of elders. I strongly believe that the importance of extended family and including respect of elders is less important now than it was in the past.