I hail from a conservative family, with prevalent patriarchy. But I see my cousin be of immense help to his wife. He transports food from kitchen to the dining area, changes his decisions to support his wife’s decisions, and treats her like an equal and not someone to be suppressed. He has broken the chain.
Last month, my BIL drove 10 hours (back and forth) to drive to a hospital in a different city to get my mom’s surgery done. He used his contacts to get us the best doctors, and was throughout patient (pun not intended) with us. He is not that usual son-in-law who only demands “respect” from in laws but never shows up when needed. He has broken the chain.
I used to suffer immensely in my previous jobs. Mostly because I did not love what I did. So with immense courage, some failures and not caring about embarrassment, I became a writer. I think I have broken the chain of sempiternal suffering.
More often than not, you cannot control where you are born and what you have been given. Yet, you have been given the wisdom to make choices. Which necessarily need not be the choices that are being generationally made. You have the armour of education, which a lot of your previous generations were often denied.
You can make the choice today to be a nicer, to be a different human being.
You can break the chain.