Fast, not Insane… Striking The Balance!

The other day I was driving, with my little sister by my side. The road was quite wide and empty, and I was driving at a decent 80kmph. Suddenly, my sister almost screamed “drive fast!!!” and I was like “what’s the hurry, let’s just enjoy the drive”. She is 14.
Sometimes I sit alone and wonder, whether the upcoming generations will be able to cope with the ‘always-in-a-hurry’ lifestyle, and save themselves from the damage that it can cause. Actually, I am a little worried. Even the fresh teenagers of today do not have the time to stop and think what’s going on. Introspection is far away!
Our own lifestyle is getting more and more complicated by the months, and I don’t know what will the following generation do, to sort things out at times! One thing is positive, and that is, that the pressure has made the upcoming generations, more sharp when it comes to intelligence… but again, that can be dangerous too, as anything before proper time has implications. If they know about good things, they may be knowing about the bad ones.
My niece who is just 6 years of age, looked at a picture of something like a rocket but a little more complicated, and said “You know I can explain to you everything in this picture”. I thought let’s hit on the child’s creativity and imagination, and asked her to explain. In an instant, she was off, telling me about things like the main cylinder, support cylinders carrying fuel, the main shuttle, the astronaut’s space, cylinders being shut off at zero gravity to save on fuel etc.. That was quite some knowledge for me, not being so much into that science in life! Kids can be so dangerously potent to make you realise, that you have been wasting much of your time in life!
Well, that’s the brighter side. Certainly, I’m worried about the other one.
One day, a friend of my sister came to our place for lunch. As I was savouring my favourite dish, ‘Indian Shahi Paneer’, she had a very important question for me that she shot… “do you have a girlfriend?” I felt as if a rock fell on my head straight from the sky… what do I say! If people of her age, can ask questions like these to the elder brothers of their friends, then about what all, would they be thinking by themselves, looks haunting. Courage at the wrong place is as bad, as it is good in the right place!
These kids want to be fast, and technology is their best friend. Facebook, PSP, X-BOX, Blackberry, I-Phone, Laptop… these are their luxuries, or rather basic amenities I would say! Socialising is fashion, and group associations, a need. Although I would like to appreciate that they are becoming more conscious about what’s going on around them and that they assume responsibilities for social causes. They are aware of a lot of things and happenings around them. But at the same time, they are also aware of a lot of things like booze, cigarettes etc.. One day, I was shocked to witness a boy of around 15, smoking outside his school just round the corner. They are short of leisures! If they start smoking at this age, they will certainly help in a country’s major problem, which is over-population! It’s sad, very sad!
Relationships! Relationships are a day’s game these days. Maybe a teenager today in every 10, would have undergone multiple break-ups and patch-ups in a single day. Being in a relationship for many, has become a social need even at an age of 16. The person drinks, he’s cool, the person smokes too, he’s cooler, the person is having an affair, he’s cooler still. Not all, but this is the mentality that is exhibited by most. The problem is not in them, but rather, the environment that they are creating for themselves, as well as for the generations to come.
Movies! Talking about majority, movies are their religion, and actors are their gods. They are obviously not much mature at an age of say 14, but are still exposed to a lavish lifestyle of an actor depicted in most movies, which they dream of. Lavish may also mean here as, involving regular activities such as visiting discos, bars, having multiple girlfriends etc.. They start dreaming of all this… courtesy – premature exposure to technology. They do not know what to follow, and what is there just for the sake of the movie’s storyline. All they know is, that they want to imitate all of that. There is no filter in their mind, at that age.
In this race, some trained minds are left behind, and are called uncool and boring because of the mere fact, that they know well, what to do and when. A lot of definitions are required to be revised, and really early.
I feel that, we should show them more of classical ways to enjoy their life, such as enjoying the nature’s beauty, swinging on the swings, listening to music – just listening, playing rather than just clubbing, playing indoor games with family too, getting involved in activities such as cooking, pottery, dance, music, and art. We are required to give them directions, and if we ourselves are stuck so hard in our lives only, then they can be expected to be in an even bad state, with their current lifestyle, by the time they reach your age!
It’s time to think, and do that is required to pull them, and even ourselves, out of this marsh of ‘no-time-for-health’ lifestyle.