TL;DR;: My parents had my brother when they were +40, and i was 14. 10 years later, they’re tired from parenting and don’t want to do it anymore. Now i’m forced to step in and take this responsibility. What should i do? **
My mom had my brother at a very late age. She was +40, i was 14 when she had him. My brother is now 10.
Both my parents are tired from parenting, my mother has no problem admitting that. I fully understand how difficult that can be, having to take care of a child when you’re at an age where you want to rest. However, i am kind of forced to do their jobs, which is the issue here.
Having to spend this year living with my parents again, i fully take care of my brother. Aside from the basics, i also have to talk to him when there’s something wrong, i have to teach him the ethics of what’s right and what’s wrong, i have to control what he’s watching and playing, and what’s driving me insane, is that they expect me to tutor him with all of his studies.
My brother is at a point where he doesn’t even acknowledge the presence of my parents, and would rather come to me than to them. My father doesn’t even have the patience to listen to him anymore.
I am tired of this. I think it’s so unfair that they’re escaping their responsibilities and passing them to me. There have been multiple occasions where i have had to cancel on my friends to watch my brother when my mom was out, and i catch myself worrying too much about his studies and our tutoring schedules.
My parents are now both picking up on new hobbies, and they find it completely normal to spend the whole day outside doing that, coming home very late. This leaves me forcibly with the responsibility of feeding him and putting him to sleep at a reasonable hour.
I am confused at what i should normally do to stop that. I constantly throw the “he’s your son not mine” to them but they end up laughing it out. When i decided that i should stop caring, i see no change and a complete indifference, and i naturally step in charge again.