Every now and then (not sure why I do this) I end up posting on the MSNBC news site in response to a news story (usually in the Health section). Ah, internet fights. When my responding to someone's post that 'everyone who is a millenial (18-34 years of age) is just stressed over things like power outages and phone chargers' somehow transforms into someone who obviously didn't read my post calling 'b.s' that I could possibly have taken care of my parent (s), why did I have a child in college, and that at age 34 it was time for me to leave school and get a job. The amount of errors in that post were laughable!
Here's just a brief summary of the errors...
I am 22
I do not have children, nor is it in the least bit possible for me to have children, given that I am a virgin...
I have two jobs, if not three.
I MOST DEFINITELY took care of my mom as she suffered and DIED from cancer.
I do take care of my dad/will be taking care of my dad.
My parents were slightly older when I was born (34 and over 40) so really, it's quite possible to be caring for them even in my twenties. My dad is now less than a year from turning 65, has high blood pressure, high cholesterol, sleep apnea, has had a silent heart attack, insomnia, and depression-not to mention being quite overweight. Some of his medications make him sleep walk/sleep eat, and he has been known to crash into things etc etc.
I actually ended by saying that I did feel we were in a high-paced society with a bit of a technology overload, giving the example of my friend who does not have a smartphone (neither do I) and was reprimanded for not answering an email immediately. He happened to be in class at the time, and had a habit of checking his email once or twice a day and responding at that time...but they got mad because he didn't drop everything and respond immediately!
My main point was that we aren't stressed because of 'power outages and phone chargers dying on us', we are stressed because of real life, like any other generation. If we look at the younger end of the spectrum, the 18-25ish crowd, we are also looking at brains that are not even fully developed. Perhaps this is part of why we are more stressed than the older generations, not to mention that everyday, there are news reports that minerals are going to be gone by the time I'm 35, that we are facing conundrums in terms of energy (we have the ability to be completely sustainable, but governments do not subsidize solar and wind power...they subsidize fossil fuels, which will be gone within 2-3 decades), that this country has this sort of nuclear weapon, that there will be no retirement benefits, that there is a possibility of a food shortage yet the solutions that have been created come with their own set of problems (ex, celiac disease is on the rise because wheat has TONS more gluten in it than 100 years ago due to genetic modification to increase yield etc etc)...
The internet is both a wonderful and a terrible thing. Seems a little bit like the way television was during the Vietnam War (the first war that was really televised to a mass population).
Yet I still have hope. Maybe going through a lot more than many young people my age has given me wisdom and insight...sometimes I get frustrated with 'young people antics'. Despite this, I have friends-close friends-who are around my age that have done some pretty amazing things...
My friend J, a survivor (an amazing story) of the Rwandan genecide, who has started an organization to provide education and health resources to Rwanda. Did I mention that he's also a nurse? He could have chosen to become bitter and what-not from his experiences, but he has taken something that NO ONE should have to go through EVER (because it's completely not natural at ALL-basically, he was a little boy, and the soliders/rebels/something gave him a choice of his life or his sister's life...he said 'kill me'...it didn't happen and for years he thought his sister had been killed (miraculously she survived)) and has looked at two things...education and healthcare...that everyone should have access to equally.
My friend S, who has created a foundation for Sustainable Development, and is reaching out to leaders around the world. Did I mention that he's only 20?! He's also a pretty fabulous clarinet player...this is also where I found out that silver and gold are likely going to disappear by 2030...which hit me in a weird way because I am a flute player, and my instrument is made of silver...and a small bit of gold (and a tiny percentage of nickel, because you can't have absolutely pure silver or gold).
Life can be like wine. You can either be bitter or get better with age. Now, I've never tasted wine, but I understand the principle. So...which do you want to be doing...getting better or bitter as you go through life?
I want to be getting better.
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