Thoughts: Are we better off today than tomorrow?
[A precious old photo of my now-90-years-old grandpa, taken at his home in China in the early 1920s]
My parents and grandparents used to tell us how things were so different back when they were growing up.
In THEIR time, there were no fancy cars. No microwaves. And definitely no cool, remote-controlled toys.
I’m now a parent myself, and I look at how my kids are exposed to things that we didn’t have when WE were their age.
In OUR time some three decades ago, there were no mobile phones. No internet. No access to really nice library books.
[Public library facilities here in Singapore are excellent, if you ask me!]
Things just keep on changing. It’s just the way things are.
But are all things changing for the better? Are we better off today than some twenty years ago? Will things be better thirty years from today?
Well. Technology-wise, yes, it’ll sure be so much more advanced.
But, I’m not sure I can say the same for the people though.
So many things can be done so fast these days that we are becoming less patient, aren’t we?
Meals can be ready (eg. taken out of the freezer and plonked into the microwave) so fast that the process of cooking from scratch (read: peeling, cutting, steaming, frying, serving) may no longer be that appealing to many (unless you’re passionate about cooking to begin with, of course).
We have gadgets to remind us of appointments and important dates that we tend to remember LESS things now than the time when these gadgets were not invented.
[I used to remember MANY phone numbers before I started using mobile phones and relying on its phone book!]
And, are young ones today groomed and taught to think and care for others MORE, or are they more interested and focused on the game console in their hands that they ignore personal interactions with friends and family members nearby?
And how about other areas like, materialism, consumerism, morality and fidelity in marriage?
…
As much as I see myself as a relatively care-free and optimistic person, I know I can’t ignore the fact that the future will most likely be more difficult for our kids to live in – IF they were to live life ‘righteously’, that is.
Honesty, integrity, patience, and a consistently faithful and monogamous life may be rare to find.
Hmm.
If you ask me, I’d say I totally have NO idea how my two kids will be like ten, twenty, thirty, forty years from today.
Will they follow and be part of crowd? Or will they stand firm in what they believe is right, AND influence others in a positive way?
I may not know the answer to that, but there are two things I know for sure.
I know if I’d like my kids to be the latter, together with my husband we need to teach and raise them in God’s way as best as we can TODAY.
And, I also know how crucial it is for us to constantly and humbly pray and ask for God’s mercy and grace.
Because we parents are imperfect sinners ourselves, and there are way TOO many external influences that can easily sway our kids from whatever positive upbringing and teachings we’ve imparted while they’re still in our care.
May God help us and all little ones be the kind of people He wants us to be.
