A group of teens were asked to write down their long term goals. Majority of them wrote something along the lines of, “owning my own house and having a good job”. And that really saddened me. Is this what our youth is growing up wanting to be? Owning a house? Having a good job? Whatever happened to dreams and things bigger and better than just money?
And then the next thing was to think about their lifetime goals. The teens were asked to think about their core philosophies, what is most important to them in their life. And money came up again. “I want to be rich, so everything I do will be to earn more money”. Whatever happened to making a positive impact in the world? Giving back to society? Being kind and humble? Respecting Mother Nature? Spending time with people you love and cherish?
Someone once told me when you’re young, everything’s possible. But as I sat there looking at these expressionless teens, I did not see any excitement for the future, there were no enthusiasm about big dreams. All I saw was the burden of growing up. The dread of having to meet society’s expectations. Expressionless, lacklustre, brainwashed.
It was a sad, sad day.
