We Live In A World...

 

Hi!

It seems every generation, as they reach an age that sees them at the end of their time in the workforce, as they have another 'coming of age' moment, as the time comes to pass the baton of running the place to the next, younger generation, it seems the ones relinquishing power, are completely convinced of the incompetence of the generation next in line. 

Now, if that were to be true, that the whole of these upcoming generations are incompetent, soft, misguided, and whatever else you may think they are, does that not fall on how they were raised? At least, somewhat?

Now, I don't know about you, but I am a GenX parent who raised 4 millennials. They are far from soft, anything but incompetent, and if misguided means they are open and accepting of humans being given the space to thrive exactly as they wish to, who gage people on how they treat others rather than the size of their bank account, then my hubby and I misguided the hell out of them, for sure. 

The greatest generation felt the silent generation would run things into a ditch, the silent generation felt that the hippies of the baby boomer generation were going to turn things to shit for sure, boomers never held much hope for Gen X, I mean we were far too independent, were born with precious few fucks to give, and let's face it, have a reputation of being fairly feral.

This independent, feral group are the ones who have raised these millennials and Gen Z kids. 

Millennials are now in their thirties and early forties. They are raising the young end of Gen Z and the Gen Alpha kids. The kids that had formative years shaped by a worldwide pandemic, and all that it entailed. The kids who watched an insurrection on live tv. The kids that have witnessed what Hatfield and McCoy politics does, and how it filtres through into our lives. 

No, I think these next generations are exactly what the world needs. 

They are paying attention, they are watching what doesn't work. They are working solutions because hustle and resourcefulness is where they shine. They are probably more adept at rolling with the punches, thinking on the fly, and collaborating than we could ever hope to be.

They have had to have roommates because of things like student debt and the fact that a full-time job can't keep flesh and bone together without them. They know hustle, because side gigs have gone from hobby to necessity. 

They've watched us make our mistakes and have learned from them, just like we learned what not to do from those who came before us. 

Just because things have been done the same way for a long time, absolutely does not mean that it's been the best way, the only way, or can't be improved upon. 

I have no doubt that the generations to come will find ways to secure:

-bodily autonomy for all.

-the separation of church and government

-anti-hate laws

-the end to racism and discrimination of all kinds (or at least get us closer than we've ever been)

-our world's longevity through finding working solutions to the climate crises

-education that truly prepares people for the world they are growing into

It's easy to paint the world with doom and gloom, especially when there are those out there spreading conspiracy theory nonsense to the masses. It's hard to keep up with some of these theories because as the predictions never seem to come to pass, more strings are added or taken away, desperately trying to tie together whatever crazy tidbit will help their narrative seem more plausible in that moment. 

It's like trying to start a collection of unicorn poop. They keep searching, but can never quite find it. 

There are those who feel these young generations are somehow "brainwashed." Other favourites used are 'indoctrinated" or "groomed."

All of the above may be true, but not in the sense they mean.

They believe our kids and grandkids being accepting, inclusive, open, fiercely anti-racist, and non-judgmental constitutes brainwashing, indoctrinating and grooming.  Personally, I think it's just raising them to be decent humans. 

To me 'brainwashed" is something that happens when a person gets to a poison information saturation point, insisting things are true regardless of proof to the contrary. And I do mean real proof. Data put forth, peer studied, reviewed by experienced experts in the field, and tested. You know...proof. Example: The earth is not flat. The moon landing really happened. Covid is real, and the vaccines have kept countless people not only alive but from needing hospital care.These kids question everything.

Indoctrination. This one is a bit tricky because so much of our society could be constituted as indoctrination. From the first time you hear or find yourself spouting the line we all swear we will never use the "Because I said so,' we are either the indoctrinated or the indoctrinator. As soon as we ask someone to believe or obey something uncritically, without question, or as soon as we accept something in that same way, indoctrination happens It happens all the time in organized religion. You are asked to accept. To question is blasphemous. It happens in some workplaces. It happens.

Now are these younger generations indoctrinated any more than we were. I doubt it severely. These kids are more aware, more assured, more confident, more likely to stand up, as they are the first generations that have been raised knowing that they matter, that what they have to say has merit, and their ideas carry weight. Truth be told, these young ones are far less likely to become indoctrinated into anything. Period.

Groomed. A buzzword that has been repurposed to fit a narrative. Knowing the connotation attached to this word, the right-wing, book-banning, queer-discriminating fearmongers have twisted it to try and sully the movement of acceptance that these kids are fostering. They want to take a word that depicts what sexual predators do to their victims to prime them for the horrors that come next, and attach it to teaching empathy, kindness, compassion and acceptance of self and others. They want to connect these beautiful ideals to something so incredibly vile. It's sickening, really.

We live in a world where kindness is more abundant than cruelty. And that's a good thing. It's true. All you have to do is allow yourself to see it. 

If you choose to focus on the dark, pretty soon it becomes all you can see. 

Helping polish the shine on those who have been made to hide their light can only make our world brighter. Helping others sparkle will never dampen your glow, it will just add to the brilliance. 

We live in a world... so live.