Don't Get Off My Lawn

Don’t Get Off My Lawn

John Paul Derryberry

What's as American as apple pie, baseball, and waxing poetically about the American dream? Simultaneously saying kids are our future and then complaining about the generations younger than us not being up to taking the reigns of government for the people, by the people. I guess it's written in the Constitution that you must begin the slow descent into being a get-off-my-lawn person when you reach a certain age, probably around 43. I bet some old grump muttered-- this generation, wanting to land on the moon; their heads are in the stars; they need to grow up. I fully understand not old people fall into this category, but boy do many of us love to complain about younger folks.

One day you are talking about your potential dreams for your life and then, all of a sudden, someone slips in a "well back in my day," or "the problem with kids these days," and the transformation starts to take hold. You give up on learning new music, understanding new technology, and begin to write off the next generation as dimwits who know nothing about life. Even though when your computer crashes, they are the first ones you call for help. While receiving that help, you complain about computers ruining lives, you have to-- it's written in the rules.

I haven't reached the age yet where the transition has taken hold of me—this my vow to fight off going down that road as long as possible.  I know the complaints about younger folks that are spouted out now.  Get off my lawn person complaint number 1- This generation doesn't want to work—my retort, good for them. Life is short. We should spend less time working and more time with loved ones and doing stuff we are emotionally invested in. And I'm a guy that loves my job, and even I understand working too much is causing a ton of stress across our country.

Get off my lawn person complaint number 2- They always want more money. So did you!!! Every working person has always uttered this phase, " I deserve more for what I'm doing!" Here is the kicker; they are not wrong. This country deserves a raise. We work hard and have accepted too little for too long.

There are countless other complaints lobbied at our future leaders, too many to give you a counter-argument for each one. It's like the older generations don't trust their work in raising and shaping future generations to be better than them. It's a weird place to find yourself, so bitter about life that you start to blame young people who really don't have the equity to make big sweeping changes to culture yet. So here's to aging into a don't get-off-my-lawn person. I'm going to be an old grump who tells the next generation,  make what we have better, and by all means, live the life you see that fits you. And, my new 2045 teleporter isn't working. Can you come fix it!