My Generation

My Generation offers a contradiction to society and history, alike. While the one previous to ours is known for their vocal advocacy for peace and forthrightness of government, and those prior to that as dedicated to country, sacrificing and selfless, the population of Generation X are at once selfish and sarcastic, caustic towards the overly principled, critical of the self confident.
We were at first known as the slacker generation, a lost age, named thusly because of our lack of ambition, or so it seemed. It is said we were self expressive to a fault, self absorbed and shallow, we seemed interested only in now. Immediate gratification was our mantra. We depended on our parents for financial support, long past they had theirs. We changed college majors three and four times, or dropped out all together. We had no sense of responsibility, slept in late, called in sick to our menial jobs, skipped classes and bragged about it. We complained about our lot and felt shorted when life didn't offer itself up on a Golden Platter. We were self interested and self seeking. We would accomplish nothing, or so it was said, written off as a failure of an entire generation. We took for granted things that the greater eras had fought for. We were unappreciative and immature, wearing flannel shirts and smoking pot while listening to Suicide Rock and writing poetry to memorialize Kurt Cobain.
Much is written about the failure of Generation X to contribute to the greater good or think beyond today. Yet little is said about how this failure phenomenon was created. There is no book examining the impetus of our morals or research determining the catalyst of our isolationism. "Experts" are sometimes quoted as saying we were given everything, worked for nothing and there were no expectations of us. And my generation says nothing. It is as though we are too unapproachable or imbecilic to contribute or respond.
It is true. We are Generation X for a reason. But is isn't because our childhoods were
idyllic and easy or because we are too self absorbed to care about the future. It is because we are damaged. We are children of a generation who valued personal freedom over selfless devotion to family. We are children of a generation who divorced often and easily, resulting in throwaway relationships. We were throwaway children, deemed by experts as "self resilient", our parents were told we'd adjust and it was better to move on and not to indulge us when we acted out. Our feelings were neither considered nor valued. We are the result of feminism, where woman, mothers, were told not only could they have it all, but they SHOULD have it all. So we were left with countless babysitters, daycare providers and relatives while our parents indulged themselves in supporting the "greater good", while our single parents partied and while adults came and went in our lives, never dependable or constant. We learned not to depend on anyone but ourselves, not to trust that tomorrow would be what we expect and that the future is NOT in our control. We were not listened to and our concerns were not taken seriously. We were immediately deemed less important than the prior generation because we had no noble cause to unite around, no difference to make in our world.We are Generation X because we were not given a name, allowed a voice or determined to matter.
But we do matter and we are making a difference. We care about our environment and are changing the way that people view the earth. We are willing to change our lifestyle, live outside the box, do what is not easy in order to save it. We are tolerant of all people, religions, races, lifestyles and cultures, without exception. We realize that America is not the center of the universe and care about how the rest of the world lives. We play very different role in our families than our parents did. We are not the central figures, but our children are. We are stay-at-home moms and dads, volunteering in their classrooms, involved in their activities. We make decisions based on their emotional well-being instead of our own personal ambition or desire. We are there. Even when we divorce, we accept non-traditional versions of family in order to maintain stability. We teach our children that they matter. And we have learned that we have a name, it is Mom and Dad, Brother, Sister, Lover, Teacher, Lawyer, Friend. We are neither feckless nor uncaring. We are here and we have a voice. Despite we were were taught when we were children, we matter.