“In a great big land of freedom, at a time we really need ‘em/They don’t make ‘em like my daddy anymore.” – Loretta Lynn With the 100th anniversary of my late father’s birth now in the rearview mirror, I find myself wondering if “the Greatest Generation” (the demographic group born 1901-1927) truly has to be a one-off convergence of skills, virtue and vision.
True, the generation that survived the Great Depression, won World War II, built a booming postwar economy and (for good or ill) handed the baton to the Baby Boomers is a hard act to follow, but is it an impossible act to follow?
I realize it looks impossible when you encounter umpteen youngsters waddling around with a soft drink refill taller than themselves. Or when F-bombs flow freely from the descendants of folks who had to learn Latin, Western Literature and debate in school. Or when goofy college sophomores are ambush-interviewed and can’t tell how many dimes are in a dollar, how many weeks are in a year or who won the Civil War.
But there are glimmers of hope. My wife the college biology teacher encounters her share of unserious students, but sometimes she is pleasantly surprised by a pupil who is polite, humble and conscientious.
I have worked around young men who play hard, but they also work hard. Some of them work two jobs to meet their family obligations.
If you can wade through all the doomand- gloom sensationalized news, you will still find reports of adolescents and young adults who defend a classmate from bullying, rescue a neighbor’s dog from a burning house, mow the lawn free of charge for senior citizens or perform countless other random acts of kindness.
The numbers could always be better, but many young people do take career paths of sacrifice for the greater good.
One of the sayings of Edwin Lewis Tyree (1925-2000) that sticks with me most is “There’s no such thing as a simple job.” Dad’s axiom had a double meaning: projects require foresight and preparation — and even then Murphy’s Law intrudes.
So, yes, nurturing productive future generations is a daunting task, but not an impossible task.
Parents, teachers, political leaders and entertainers all need to convey high expectations and contribute to the fulfillment of those expectations.
Classes in civics, economics and practical skills (Shop, Home Ec) should be non-negotiable.
Children deserve a stable homelife, not rotating deadbeat live-ins. They need an introduction to religion/ spirituality before they stumble across it (or don’t) at age 18.
Youngsters need to be nudged more toward a JFK “ask not” attitude than the prevailing mania for “free stuff.”
I know the cesspool has been the norm for a while, but consumers should challenge Hollywood, the music industry and the fashion industry to come up for air every now and then. Celebrate the uplifting things in life.
Someone needs to brainstorm a way to build self-esteem without exhausting the world’s entire supply of satin on “participation ribbons.”
We need more “little engine that could” than “little engine that plays the victim card.”
I pray that we never experience a nuclear war, a famine or another 1930s-style depression, because all but the most seasoned survivalists would go into panic mode.
But if we believe in future (potentially great) generations and give them the proper tools, they just might rise to the occasion.
Danny Tyree welcomes email responses at [email protected].
