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| 1968 |
So,
when I was younger than what I am now, I always thought that I, or
the people of my generation would not have a generation gap with our
younger generation. We, after all were the generation of the Flower
power, the Hippie cult, the free birds who were born in a free India.
Most of us had emerged out of the so called old fashioned
pattern of girls being educated only to be ready for the marriage
market. Then, the ultimate target of a girl's father was to find a
suitable groom and get the girl married off. The kanya daan was
considered the biggest daan of all. Our generation broke free from
that mould, a lot of us competed and joined different services. Kiran
Bedi was the first woman who entered the hallowed male dominated
precincts of the Indian Police Service. The State Bank of India too
opened its doors wide for girls to join the service as Probationary
Officers. We were few in numbers yet we had come out and were all out
to conquer the world.
The
home fires had to keep burning, the quintessential mother in law who
was of the older generation said quite openly, "I never asked
her to work. Her main duty is to look after her house, family and
children". So this radical daughter in law would become a good
bahu at home and a good worker at her work place. At work we had to
compete and prove that we were as good as the men. All of us made a
grand success of both our responsibilities. Yes, I have proof that we
all succeeded. I therefore thought that we the fighters, rebels,
liberated leaders, would never have the problem of generation gap.
This
thought lasted until one fine day a friend of mine said to me that
she felt very frustrated because she couldn't understand anything
about the Internet, Facebook, e- mail, or Skype. She said that she
felt like an illiterate person because she simply could not grasp
these and kept forgetting the steps. It then dawned on me that
the world is progressing at a very rapid pace, and technology is
moving very fast. Everyday there is a new thing coming up, and a new
term is added to the vocabulary.
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| LEARN, LEARN & LEARN |
This
to my mind is the present day generation gap. Our generation was
worried and too cautious. We did not trust our children. We
wanted to keep them sheltered and shielded. We guided them
everywhere. We knew all their friends, we helped them choose their
careers as well as their spouses. The newest generation on the other
hand is very clear about what they want from life. What career would
they want. Which friends they want, which games they wish to play and
how they want to remain fit.
Our
Generation gap is all about our trust. We still want to guide
our children. We still raise doubts about our grand children being
wise enough to take decisions on their own. We worry and think that
we should be consulted, because we have wisdom gained with age on our
side. But when I see the wisdom that my grand children have and the
way their mind explores new fangled ideas, I think I have to take a
back seat and allow them to take wings. Allow them to soar the skies.
Allow myself the luxury of believing and knowing that they are safe
because they know how to be safe. That reminds me last year my four
year old grand daughter said to me," Dadi put on your seat belt.
We have to be safe". With this kind of wisdom at such a young
age, I think I can sit back and relax. I need to just enjoy the
thought that we equipped our children with proper education and
they are in turn equipping their children with more opportunities to
explore. I allowed my children some freedom and they are
allowing their children some more freedom.
Freedom
to think, explore, question and take their own decisions.
This
generation gap I think can be bridged if we open our minds and
understand that life is all about learning. There is no age to stop
learning and so one can never sit down smugly thinking that we have
seen the world and so know what is best. We have to trust the new generation. We need to accept that
to remain abreast with the present times we have to continue with our
learning. With the younger generation becoming our teachers the gap
is sure to become quite narrow.
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| 2013 |
9 comments:
“Our youth now love luxury. They have bad manners, contempt for authority; they show disrespect for their elders and love chatter in place of exercise; they no longer rise when elders enter the room; they contradict their parents, chatter before company; gobble up their food and tyrannize their teachers.”
Who said that? Socrates. Since time immemorial elders have worried about the next generation only for that generation to worry about the next. But defining moments in History, such as printing, TV and the Internet dramatically change the generational gap. Only solution is to try to get to know more than the brats and show them who is boss
Varsha, you have echoed many of the thoughts that I used to have. This I guess is normal with every generation. There will always be a generation gap, only the parameters of reference would have changed. It is the lessons that we learn in life that make us accept the reality of change and accordingly adapt. No generation is superior or inferior for the human mind is in a continuous state of evolution. It was nice reading what you wrote and to top it all the picture of you as a young woman. Physical change yes but the spirit remains.
Siddharth Sahgal said,"A very well wriiten piece. However, just think about it, u r on FB, posting, writing blogs etc etc, so uhv chAnged with the times and accepted things as they are and accepted change, so obviously the gap is bridged. Ur experience is unique n valuable n that is accepted also, I loved readinng this. Hv a nice day."
Mukesh Gupta said,"Generation gap is self-thought & self-created. If one tune himself to the prevailing circumstances, realizes the situation & respect time & relationships, one does not feel any gap."
Pattabhi Raman said,"The gap is part of progress and evolution, no doubt. But some elders try to bridge this gap (often with unhappy results) and some accept it for what it is..and very often the youngsters are not that keen to bridge the gap and find the efforts of elders embarassing."
Nicely written and loved reading it, thanks.
If generation gap means gradations in behavioral patterns between two consecutive generations, as well as interplay, then clearly it will remain so with societal change. Since relativity is never in isolation, gengap is and will remain eternal and always pertinent in the real world. In fact it might even be vital for initiating future change, a wellspring of evolution... wouldn't the world become staid and insipid otherwise? It is always the desire to improve the existing lot that creates positive change.
What gengap is frequently associated with is lack of regard, respect or a sound ear. That I believe is a behavioral phenomenon, a result of upbringing, circumstances, and innate and social character. Will possibly remain so, and possibly “worsen” at large in this regard as humans become more isolated in their virtual worlds where they find solace. However this particular aspect will remain merely a part of the larger theme of gengap none-the-less.
Gengap needn't always be spoken of negatively or in parts, it is just a social phenomenon.
Gopa Roy said," yes varsha di true time has changed.................we will have to learn from our new generation and rely on them"
Lalit Chugh said,"Varsha, I like it. I like it because it is a very courageous admission of the gap with the possible cause being identified as the trust factor. To that extent it will possibly let that lack of trust vanish soon. And that admission itself is the process of bridging set in motion!
Let me look at it from a different angle now. The term “GENERATION GAP” gained currency in the 1960s. That is the time our ‘generation’ was growing up and learning to find its ‘own’ independent existence. It appealed to us so much as it was a kind of proof that our elders didn’t really understand us so well. We clung to it. To further reinforce that they didn’t really understand us we brought out journals and magazines with content specially meant for us. JS (Junior Statesman) and Youth Times were the pioneers. While Youth Times didn’t appear to be such a rebellious move, JS certainly was. The older generation found its contents strange and outlandish! I remember recommending the journal for College Library and getting approval of the library committee was tough job as the professors would veto it! It wasn’t just the generational gap at work but also the cultural preservation need (more particularly with respect to such matters as musical tastes, fashion, culture and politics) that made them act that way.
TV transmission was available only in Delhi till 15 August 1975. It spread to three more cities in 1975 and much of what was transmitted was designed, developed and dictated by the earlier generation. JS and Youth Times and some odd international journals we could pick at old book shops were a big release. And then there was this radio program YUV VANI which acted as some kind of additional forum. All these opened a new window of information for that generation. I remember the impact the song The Times They Are Changing sung by Bob Dylan had on those times!
That was our way. The newer generations have theirs. At least our generation did realize it!
Would I imagine my grandfather (who retired as head master from a school) to sing Wheels of the Bus Go........ with gestures and dance with me when I was a baby? Certainly no! But Shyamala and I do it every day with our one year old granddaughter when we meet on Skype. We play the ‘pretend’ games with them just like kids. And that is the change and flexibility our generation is adopting. After all we too need to relive another childhood! And that is our need."
Bal Gupta said,"Apne to is post se kai generations ka gap door kar diya. Internet has erased the physical distance factor and brought people of different age groups together in a seamless manner.
On Facebook and Twitter you can interact with people of all ages on equal terms."
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