youth

 This is a time in which youth is what is valued and strived for. Youth have the expendable income, the energy, the desire, the market. People want to be young, look young, dress young, act young. They want adventure and pleasure and not to be reminded of a future in an old folks home. The young have all the answers and have no need for the wisdom of the elders—who are also trying to stay young.

Where do the young find themselves? They are in debt. They struggle with drugs, addiction and depression.
They see violence in their schools and in their streets. They see adults who can’t solve political or social problems. Divorce undermines parenting. Religion lags behind them in the understanding of moral and social issues. They search for authentic heroes and find comic book heroes. The cultural messages to the young about what it means to be a man or a woman are confused and even destructive.

Every young person needs to be affirmed for who they are, loved and provided a good education.
Young people are our future, and if we are wise, we will be proactive in how they are guided to adulthood.