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A Disillusioned Generation
I’m 25 years old.
I arrived on this planet in the midst of a technological revolution. In my lifetime, my generation traveled from VHS to VR. The generation before me had seen a man land on the moon. With the internet, the knowledge of the world was now at our fingertips. Disney said “dream big,” our parents said, “aim high.” The impossible was now possible. “We will do great things!”
Or, so we were told.
At 25, many of my peers are waking up in an average life and wondering if they are a complete failure. Perhaps they hold a steady job to support their family, or they stay home with the kids, but they aren’t the President. They aren’t walking on Mars. They don’t feel they changed the world the way the adults prophesied they would. Did they “fail”?
My generation, striving to change the world, has fallen out of love with the rhythm of everyday life. They scoff at the beautiful and simple things —belittling love, marriage, and family in exchange for dreams, innovation, and fame.
The 20 somethings are restless. They take pills to prevent motherhood and creams to prevent aging. They ceaselessly seek the fountain of youth and the tree of knowledge–never letting their soul rest. They forgo the way of life their ancestors treasured, all while feeling like a plane delayed on the runway.
When they don’t find the beauty in the everyday things, they quickly become disillusioned, uneasy, and even angry. They claim they are forsaken by the world who told them to aim for the highest star but forgot to mention that the journey is really what counts.
Is it any surprise to see my generation forgo becoming parents? They feel their life hasn’t yet started. Perhaps once they reach the highest aim, then they will be deserving of love and family–they can’t risk any distractions now. They have a world to change.
How can we correct the course for these restless wanderers? How can we remind them of the foundation on which our success has been built–love, family, and service.
In essence, after having launched their ambition into outer space, how can we bring them back home?
That is a compelling charge! If we look around our communities it is clear to see their is more work to be done–more to make beautiful and good. (More work to be done on ourselves even!) Perhaps we need to figure out how to inspire people to see those opportunities in their own back yards?
It’s been posted in its entirety here more than once. It’s my favorite next to “Sons of Martha.”
I think the only productive path forward will be taking full responsibility for our own lives and, in the spirit of what you said, meeting the opportunities and challenges we are presented.
I do love seeing that on GHTV. I am actually one of those young people with a 110 year old fixer-upper. I love your advice–look to our ancestors, read old books, garden, etc. I completely agree. These are lovely.
Amen!!
Some things are eternal. Feeling that one’s generation has it harder than the previous generations, and that the best of times are behind us. Then later feeling like one’s generation is the last one to value hard work and discipline. Feeling like surely we must be living in the end of days. I suspect a lot of things that people think they are unique in feeling, are actually things humans have been lamenting for a thousand years. But I’d want to ask @arahant to be sure.
Joy Pullman, on reasons for hope.
Which include opportunities for action and difference-making.
Virtual Reality :)
And Mark will help you with your grammar – enough with 3 letters of the alphabet to describe a word or phrase. Pet peeve: when your phone or Internet finishes a word, fills in a sentence, interprets a wrong word. I can think for myself and I want to remember how to spell…..
I’m somewhat ashamed for being this pessimistic but things don’t look good right now, and not just because of Afghanistan. The debacle will certainly lead to conservative political victories in the next 2-4 years, but the problems are not fixable politically. The problem lies with at least half the country that have a very different vision and values that were once the bedrock of the nation.
Amen.
Making it in today’s world can still be done, but you might not be able to make it on the terms you want. The company I work for pays crane operators $40/hour, and they get overtime. Carpenters make $25-$30. We had an equipment operator who probably earned $80k/year. Most construction companies are begging for help. You do what you have to do to get by.
Promises that can’t be kept won’t be.
Plan accordingly.
Hear hear.
Every 25 year old should.
Too bad no “influencer” suggests it.
Kipling is full of wisdom.
I thought I felt that as I approached my 1st retirement. I was disabused of the notion as I watched the Airmen I worked with help out with my retirement logistics.
The talk I gave was a thank you to them in the assurance that my beloved Air Force was in good hands. Theirs.
If that happens, any paper you have in the bank is going to be worthless, too. We do have a little silver laid by.
The Mayor Pete folks have an eye on “excess retirement” savings.
That’ll probably start a war.
They believe that politics is a generational thing. They are, so they keep telling us, the rising demographic.
Fargo, ND. Good jobs, Affordable homes. And only 1,475 miles to Sea Isle City.
The Computer says 22 hours and 8 minutes. I say, put my little Brown-Eyed Beauty behind the wheel. She takes loose talk like that as a challenge. Never seen her fall.
Did you say that just for us? Because if you don’t really mean it, we may live long enough to find out, and we will call you on it.
I trust Mikayla.
Well, to be honest…so do I. I really just meant that it was a pleasant surprise to hear a young person say that, and I was using an attempt at humor to express it.
I trust Mikayla.
No, I genuinely think that would be the best way forward. I am ,of course, just a person and liable to lose sight of this at times–but it is the ideal.
I so appreciate your trust and your humor :)