HORSES AND WATER
I distinctly remember a conversation with an 'elderly' (probably 45 at the time) co-worker when I was working construction as an immortal at the baby age of 16. Earl said, "Rick... do you like work?" By that time, I'd already been 'working' off and on for 9 summers, since the age of 7, with my father on various construction projects. I replied, "Yeah, it's alright." Earl laughed and responded, "GOOD... because you're going to be doing it for a long time." Was that a bad thing?
At that young age though, what else was there? What else did there need to be? Make a few bucks to buy gas for a weekend date, spend time outdoors in the hot short Montana summers, learn tricks of the trade from those more experienced, and hope that somewhere down the road, all those working days would contribute to life and a career. There was no internet, there were no cell phones, no video games, no distractions. Sure, there was a ‘me’, as it was ‘me’ that was working and trying to gain experiences that would provide a way to live. And for reasons unknown at the time, I had accepted the notion that life would unfold from the benefits of my hard work. It would be a process.
Skip forward a few decades… to the age of the millennials, or as I have come to call them… mellennials. It’s not right that we categorize everyone as falling into this or that group, and certainly we can’t do that with mellennials. There are exceptions. The hot topic of recent years has been mellennials… who are they, why are they, and what will be their legacy? Articles, and entire books on that matter have been written, struggling to define this generation and how the rest of us can or should cope. As with those who have gone before, this generation will define itself with time. Good, bad, unpredictable.
Each person, each generation has experiences and situations that define ‘who’ they are, not who they will be, as that will come. Post World War II was filled with survivors looking for opportunity, and willing and capable of working hard to fulfill their dreams. It was who they had become. They would reap what they sowed, or not. However, for the mellennials, there is no future, there is no belief in hard work. For the most part, it’s all about ‘me’, today, and what ‘me’ wants, without the investment. It’s about demanding respect, listening to their voices lacking in knowledge and business sense, financial independence without making money. Is this possible?
The Indianapolis 500 car race starts and finishes at essentially the same place. Yet, the drivers must race around that 2.5 mile-long oval 200 times, to get back to where they started, before they can be named “Champion.” To reach that goal however, the racing team will expend thousands of days and countless failures to define an unpredictable journey for 1 team member to cross that finish line ahead of all others. More often than not in life, there simply are no shortcuts.
On the other hand, there can be despair. I worked in Haiti for almost 2 years following the January 2010 earthquake, and met thousands of people, some at the top of the food chain, and most at the bottom. In one conversation, I was told the word ‘future’ does not exist for most Haitian people. It’s a luxury afforded only for those with means, and not for those simply seeking to get from dusk to dawn. It is a very complex situation in Haiti, and not the focus for now. But, that situation is not for lack of committed, hard-working people. I’ve lived and worked in 23 countries, and the Haitians are the hardest workers I’ve encountered, bar none! It is their deep faith and hope in God, and not their trust in a dysfunctional government, that puts smiles on their faces in spite of hardship. Without opportunity, it will be difficult for most of my Haitian friends to envision a future.
As chance would have it, I came across an article by Tony Guo, yet another such on the mellennials – “Top 15 Things Millennials Want In Life.” With the exception of just a couple, their ‘wants’ are what many of us grew up with and also wanting… career success, good health, comfort, etc. However, there were three things about the article that confirm what our society is dealing with regarding mellennials: (1) self-centeredness – all 15 ‘wants’ are about self and not about others, (2) the last ‘want’ of happiness – perhaps a sign of something missing in our society since the mellennials have been with us, and (3) use of the word ‘want’ instead of ‘need’ - in our day, we were consumed with needing a job or connecting with friends over a beer, not wanting ‘Connection to the world’ via $1000 ‘smart’ phones. This article is concerning to me. For beyond the apparent ‘things millennials want’, there is a huge scream for help.
So, what to do with the mellennials? Do we coddle them? Nope! In the world of disaster response and recovery, I learned that simply giving money and goods to victims with the intention of creating a future has proven disastrous. Do we ignore their voices? Nope! Simply ignoring a problem doesn’t make it go away. Do we tell them to suck it up and get used to a life of hardship? Nope! That was our parents way of dealing with things, and time has moved on. Or, do we deal with what is? As people with the skills, experiences, and know-how, perhaps it is our responsibility to lead this group of ambitious, delusional descendants down a path of worth and servitude for others in future generations. These kids are very sharp and capable, just lacking some direction. I liken the near future to those early days of atom-smashing – so much energy with so many possibilities, so many unknowns. Giving in to the ‘want’ is irresponsible, and will shame our own legacy. Horses and water!