Have you noticed how old people have been replacing car showrooms on the Ku’damm ? Instead of the traditional practice of hiding the aged away in leafy suburban residences–on the spurious grounds that they need to suck in the forest-ozone and hear the twittering of birds–they are living out in the open, sandwiched between Kaisers and Tschibo. Their new homes are given supposedly glamorous but actually tactless names like Diana( did  she not die in a car crash?) or, worse, Phoenix( named after the rock star who died of a drug overdose?), anything really apart from Senioren-Residenz which has a slight aura of decay, of the twilight zone.

What has changed, of course, is the rental market. It is cheaper than ever to live on the wrong end of the Kudamm–that is, anything beyond Adenauerplatz with its Sex-kinos and Humana shop–or on the once-fashionable Charlottenburg sidestreets. Plus there is good parking when the children come to visit on Mother’s Day. And, most important, old people themselves are no longer being seen as a separate species.It turns out, to the general amazement of urban planners and property developers,that they like human contact, that they have money and indeed are about the only Berliners willing to spend cash at the moment.

So, nix with Oma-Baracke. Instead, Barack Obama: yes we can! Moving the oldies into the city centre is merely the first stage of empowerment for the over-60s, not only as recession-proof consumers but as part of a new social alignment.

For once, the British are slightly ahead on this. The government is considering  a scheme whereby grandparents will be paid to look after their grand children. Apparently grandparents are currently saving the state over four billion euros a year by  providing free childcare. One in four families uses a grandparent for babysitting at least once a week. The proposal now is that families should receive a 350 euro a week childcare allowance–basically a tax rebate–which they use to pay Oma and Opa. The result will be a surge of helpful oldies, freeing mothers to return to work.

 Now, I can see a couple of problems with this. The first is naturally how does the state intend to pay for this? But with the government throwing billions at inefficient bankers, the question seems absurd. Since we know that old people spend  their cash, why not give them greater earnings potential: the economy can only benefit.

 Second, should grandparents not be looking after the kids out of love, rather than financial interest? This is more complex. Within my ageing friendship circle–elasticated jeans, a tendency to mimic the guitar strumming of Jimi Hendrix when drunk, a nagging worry about hair loss–the interest in grand children seems to be rather abstract. There is, pride, of course, and photographs of lumpy unexceptional babies are removed from wallets more quickly than 

Lucky Luke can draw his Colt. Birthdays are remembered and celebrated, even if the young Grandads I know usually find themselves on the balcony, away from the monkeyhouse noise, puffing a Marlboro. But actual child-care, regular, confident and reliable, is undertaken more out of guilt than with enthusiasm. Grandparents often feel that they somehow failed as parents and hope to compensate with the next generation but, confronted with the 

reality of nappy stench, they flag a little.

Money changes the equation. Active grand-parenting becomes part of a contract. The classic confrontation between Grandmother and adult daughter about how best to raise a baby–often stirring up bitter memories about past( real or imagined) neglect–will evaporate. The authority will rest with the mother of the baby who can, if necessary, fire the Grandma. Grandchildren will be less spoiled. And Oma and Opa will feel less exploited, less manipulated. The exchange of money sometimes poisons relationships but in this case I think it clarifies matters.

I have been arguing for years that the age of the au pair is coming to an end. Working parents are playing roulette by handing over their children to teenagers who often speak imperfect German, who cannot cook and cannot concentrate on the child because they are too busy answering text messages from similarly bored friends. Grandparents may have out-dated ideas and they may not be able to play football in the park, but they do not have eating disorders. They know when a child is sick or just pretending; they know the difference between a Big Mac and a bowl of home-made vegetable soup. Not everyone has a grandmother willing or fit enough for childcare, but there is a large pool of other grandmothers out there in the city. What matters is the maturity, not the blood-tie.

Rent-a-grandmother: that is the future.

Dieser Artikel wurde am Donnerstag, 09. April 2009 um 10:27 veröffentlicht und ist abgelegt unter Typisch deutsch. Du kannst die Antworten zu diesem Artikel mit Hilfe des RSS 2.0 Feeds verfolgen. Du kannst eine Antwort hinterlassen oder einen Trackback von deiner Seite aus senden.