Young Old Lady
Entering the real stages of adult life is one of the rudest awakenings for teens/young adults. Growing into adulthood is always something yearned for with excitement — until obligations, money, and limitations come into play. Before, responsibility wasn't much of a struggle since it only took the bare minimum of self-discipline to complete, of course depending on the task. As long as the chore is completed, relaxation is always waiting at the end of the task. As young adults get older, however, there comes a realization that there is more to life than materialistic things and self-pleasure — now there are moral problems that arise every day.
Taking care of oneself is already a difficult task when trying to navigate through life. Those born as first generation take on the role of the mediator in a family and are often the backbones of a household; that is a different type of burden that can impair a person's mental well being. Breaking out of the mold built by family members while living in a toxic and emotionally unstable household is a difficult circumstance to escape. Defying family roles and expectations are bound to cause chaos within a household, but once broken out of those restraints comes the warm feeling of freedom. Surrounding yourself with peace whether it be people, a living space, or ambiance is a crucial factor for people to have in life to recharge properly and gain their sanity back.
When surrounded by people with clashing perspectives, it can be difficult. As cynical as it may seem, sometimes letting go of people is the best thing for one's sanity. Encouraging those who need help to take action and change their lifestyle is one way to help others and benefit everyone, including yourself, in the process. Helping people to break free of a toxic cycle is a great way to stand by the side of a loved one, but does not always lead to promising results. Though it is admirable and gratifying to see someone move forward in life, it is not one's responsibility to fix other people, especially when the loved one is reluctant to change. Transformation is not a simple process and requires strong discipline. When going through this process, it is encouraging to have moral support from loved ones, but it is more important to be your own biggest supporter to get through unpleasant circumstances.
Being in your early twenties or having to fulfill adult tasks as a teenager is a strange feeling that can lead to like a young old person. A popular TV show called Bee and Puppycat, revolves around a “young old lady” named Bee, who reflects the feelings of being both youthful and knowledgeable. Another important character in the show is Cardamon, the child and the landlord of the apartment complex Bee resides in, whose responsibilities are taking care of collecting rent, making payments and attending to resident's housing problems. Cardamon is a character that is represented as a “mature” child for his age out of obligation in an attempt to keep his life together for the sake of his mother who is in a coma. These two characters reflect the feelings of being an adult who is either free like Bee and regresses backward in aging because of the emotional needs she lacked during childhood; or a teenager or child who must be more mature than their peers such as Cardamon, to defend themselves from a young age to survive and make ends meet when neglected by adults. The pressure to survive from a young age is already a difficult task to perform, but having to support loved ones who are unable to fend for themselves is another hindrance to take on as many children of immigrants, refugees, and first-generation Americans may understand.
As we age, everyone seems to reach a point in life where they begin having an existential crisis. It was more common for people to have middle-life crises during their mid-thirties to forties but it seems nowadays that people are having existential life crises earlier in life. A contributing factor to this would be technology, and being exposed to current events based on capitalism and politics. This can lead to a child spiraling when they completely understand the effects of worldly issues that ultimately make them feel defenseless.
Contributing to the topic of existential crises, a majority of young adults are finding it difficult in finding a purpose to life. Of course, there are some people who want a family and kids to continue on life with but the next generations are looking for something new. The majority of Gen-Z find that it is difficult to continue living normally when there is no incentive to live for besides having a family and settling for self satisfaction in life. This has led Gen-Z to develop a nihilistic perspective on life by arguing that life is an obligation put on humans without a choice. This is also a defense as to why the majority of newer generations refuse to have kids, to avoid putting their potential future kids in the same position they are faced with today, being alive and helpless. The concept of having a partner is also an idea that is no longer popular since “flings” and dating around has become a trend, either as a way out of commitment or from the mindset of using dating as a game or self satisfaction. Some Gen-Z also steer away from dating out of fear of rejection, commitment, or facing negative emotions during a relationship. The point of being young is to enjoy being youthful and experiencing life. The idea of growing old is to pass on knowledge and build a family, but when younger generations are rejecting this expectation, the idea of growing old no longer seems perfect. The idea of “finding something worth living for” is something recent generations are experiencing. When people live to work and buy items to spice up their dull life, it becomes a monotonous cycle that no longer serves a person. Living in a capitalist culture has led to a morally and spiritually corrupt society making life become empty since life is surrounded by the notion of consumption in order to be happy. The idea of supply and demand has now become an emotional factor of social engagement. In a society that is slowly incorporating the concept of spirituality into personal lives, the idea of being positive 24/7 has become somewhat of a discouraging practice. Demanding “good vibes only” discourages people from actually feeling out their emotions and forces people to be happy if they want to be surrounded by company. Continuing this practice may lead to people becoming numb to their emotions and dulling their emotional instincts by believing everything is ok under any circumstance.
Being open and transparent can help others to find a meaning by sharing perspectives. Being nice and doing a good deed doesn't need an ulterior motive, it's just an activity that can be done, disregarding the judgment of strangers. When trapped in moral grief, there is not much we can do to change outlying factors but we can always make a change internally. Human goals mainly seek for pleasure or power. Working, and earning money has become meaningless by interfering with the deeper experience of life, dulling the adventure of searching for a reason to live. The current conditions of a morally corrupt civilization has begun to dull humanity. Life's meaning depends on the person, moment, and circumstance. There is no “one size fits all '' life experience. Life is like a game of chess that requires 3 encounters in life to make it meaningful: Doing a deed, encountering a person, and the attitude taken to cope when conflict arises.
