Maybe Doing Without Wasn't All that Bad After All

Why is it so much harder for Generation X to deal with tough times financially than for us Boomers? Could it be that because we had less, we had less to lose? Or because we valued the few things we did have and learned to be content with "enough" instead of "more"?

(1) We children of the 50's grew up during a time when technology was being developed and upgraded at a much slower pace. For instance, I learned the pop songs of my day while sitting in the driveway listening to the car radio. After a few battery replacements due to extended listening sessions, I acquired the skill of breaking up my listening time into smaller increments so as not to disenable the family vehicle's source of energy. I was 10 or 11 years old before I owned my very own transistor radio, for which I was required to purchase my very own batteries. I didn't know I was deprived--I was just excited to be able to listen to my music within the confines of the house instead of always outside in the car.

Today's child is exposed to his parents' choice of music in vitro. Soon after birth, music is piped into the little one's world via CD, DVD, intercom, computer, TV... The poor child can not escape even if the styles do not coincide with his/her infantile musical tastes. Even as Mommy strolls him through the local mall, music is ever-present. I wonder if those little ears and brain have any problems making the adjustment from Sears' soothing sounds to Hot Topic's hip hop? Maybe my childhood moments of silence weren't so bad after all.

(2) We Boomers had fewer choices. The great thing about having fewer choices, and hence fewer opportunites is that you have vivid memories of each event. I can remember almost every time my family went "out to eat". It occurred so seldom, it was a big deal! It was considered a special day of the month when we had hamburgers somebody else cooked in a burger warehouse. And later we never had to try to remember where that fast food came from; we didn't have McD's, Wendy's, Burger King, or Taco Bell. If it was pre-cooked, it had come from Whataburger.

Somehow we managed to eat supper together most of the time. Maybe that was because the kids' activities were limited to school-related, instrument-related, or church-related. Even my friends who were involved in sports didn't have coaches trying to be noticed by the NFL for the grueling practices they put their peewee teams through four nights a week. Does that mean we were just average instead of high-achievers? Maybe so, but we weren't having to take anti-depressants or going to therapy to learn to cope with our stressful lives.

(3) We were taught to appreciate what we did have and to make it last. Fewer choices of places to shop meant fewer shopping trips, and that meant fewer items to stuff our closets with. We even had to learn to iron so that we could wash and wear the same outfit more than once in a week's time. If it wasn't threadbare, it was still useful.

That's quite a contrast to the present-day pre-teen mindset of a different outfit for a different time of day. How many of our children own pieces of clothing with tags still hanging from them because they have never been worn, or clothes tossed aside because of a missing button or a small rip? Think of all the "greening" we could do by teaching the next generation to fully use and reuse what we have instead of trashing perfectly good items.

I must confess--I get much enjoyment from my computer, DVDs, digital camera and other modern devices. But, I know from experience that if calamity occurs, and I have to live without all these things, I can do it! Maybe being "deprived" during my childhood wasn't really all that bad...