I heard the biting comment first from our own grandmas, who would often say it as part of their daily litany whenever they disapproved of our actions. Growing boys that we were, we heard it almost daily, and it had become a regular part of their criticism. The comment was: “What is wrong with all the young people these days?” This was repeated by our parents, friends’ parents, older relatives, and their generation, making it feel like every elder was saying the same thing over and over. This was years before the internet age, and I wonder if we would have been better off with the knowledge and inputs the web offered, or if their criticism would have had a wider reach and influence. We grew up with this question hanging over our heads, and eventually, when our generation became parents, we found ourselves asking the same question about our own children. A friend called it a generational loop, but I think it’s more like a black hole. Now, as a great-grandparent, the question still lingers, not just in my mind, but also in the minds of my nephews, nieces, and their children, going straight down the rabbit hole of life. I call it the never-ending question.
