50% of 13 to 19-year-olds have never written a thank-you letter; 26% have never written a birthday or Christmas card. 58% think writing by hand is too slow to bother with. 9% say they don’t own a pen; by contrast, 74% have a tablet and 89% a smartphone. (Bic/Daily Mail)
It’s not thanking people for gifts that is shocking. This is the fault, not of the teenagers, but of the parents. Grandparents I know complain that it isn’t just a lack of thank-you letters but the absence of any acknowledgment of presents whatsoever that upsets them – not an email, a text message or a phone call to say “thank you”.
The parents are not doing their job. It’s hard work chasing children to thank parents and friends for birthday and Christmas gifts, but its something that countless generations have had to do in the past. It’s a poor world when basic good manners and courtesy depart. Fortunately, not all young people are guilty, and I believe that these old-world courtesies will return to favour when the current crop of poorly brought-up people are adults and they are treated cavalierly themselves by their nephews, neices and grandchildren. Followers of Epicurus think of the feelings of others, especially family members.
Our family insists on saying thank you in person. I understand this isn’t always possible if you have family abroad. But all my family is in my hometown, and so my parents are always sure to make me thank them the next time I see them. Failing that, I have to send them a thank you letter, I assumed it was the same with everyone else, but obviously I’ve been proven wrong.