How's all that world changin' workin' out? Are U Millennials getting things done, the kinds of things that you hoped the previous generation would have gotten around to?
Well, speaking from experience, you probably feel at this point that you coulda done more and you're puzzled by that, you're looking back and going "What the hell happened?" because things haven't really changed all that much.
Yeah, you brought us a lot of tech, and we got to thank you for bringing those wondrous computers and apps and all that into our lives, but you also opened the door to a lot of bad things coming through and using those portals but you can't be faulted for tryin’.
To improve the world, that is. Every generation gives it a go.
You were so full of hope then
Ben Konfrst- Unsplash.com
What you might be finding right about now is that the twenty-somethings are kinda lookin' down on you some, thinking that you have seriously dropped the ball and that they've got a long row to hoe 'cuz things we're supposed to get done on your watch and they weren't. Some of 'em might be a little mad.
But you got busy, didn't you? It was a little more than you expected, this thing called Life, and well, things take time you know, and most times the path you were on didn't flow in a straight line. You got sidetracked or sidelined by things and might even have lost a little ground somewhere along the way before you got back in the game but those of us that have been there totally understand all that, and that's why we didn't take it so personal when you got mad at us do you remember?
Nah. You probably don't. You were too full of yourselves then. But that's okay. So were we, in our time!
Lookin' on the bright side though, you did get a surprising amount of things done which pissed off or outright scared the kinds of people that don't like to see progress so those folks dug their heels in all the harder and put up walls or somehow hobbled progressive movements like it was the end of the world comin'(!) or something but you were just trying to help. You saw a way things could be made better but they didn't want to see a whole lot of change unless they could work that change for their own betterment, you understand, and you do. You saw darkness come out of hiding, like we did.
“So yeah, uhm… …welcome to the club!” say we who have come before. Furthermore, we’ll tell you the gist of what we realized and came to grips with when we hit forty: “You can't give up, 'cuz what else is there?”.
If you’re anything like us, and you probably are, you’re going to find that you and your contemporaries are not going to be as vocal as they used to be, and most of them won’t make it near the front page anymore. Movies and TV shows will stop portraying your generation so much. You’ll find that you’re hardly as ‘up and coming’ as you once were and that you’re certainly not hot, not as hot as the twenty-somethings coming right out of the gate. But even so, you’ll continue doing what you can.
So go and have a home-brew or something. Take the load offa your feet. Kick back and take a breather ‘cuz you gotta prepare yourself for what comes next. The twenty-somethings are hard at work creating a new culture and lingo and you’re gonna have a hell of a time trying to keep up!