It's a Jungle Out There

When our parents were children, our grandparents raised them with the intention of preparing them for success in today's world. They taught them proper manners, how to make friends, how to stay out of trouble, and how to fit in with society. No one said it was easy, but I'd take that over the struggles of today's parents any day.

Since the inception of online identities, many teens and young adults have become absolutely enthralled with broadcasting how they want to be perceived. Instead of making new friends at the playground or in our neighborhood like our parents did when they were kids, today it's all done via likes and comments on social media. Our youth is being trained to avoid real-world interactions and confrontations because they're uncomfortable and feel "unnatural".

What a world we live in where it feels more natural to converse with another human being via wifi than face to face. Personally, it appalls me. I have no qualms with the technology. I believe that it is a behemoth of a blessing and it will continue to do good things in the future unless it destroys society before we can snap back into reality as a culture.

Today's youth has made it clear that it is confirming their fears of a lack of intimate friendship when an individual does not like or comment on a public post. Likewise, it is a confidence booster and an endorphin initiator to receive mindless double-taps on their pictures by other individuals who mindlessly scroll through gigabytes of data just like they do. Is this really the lie that we've accepted? Can it be true that we base our own self-worths off of other peoples' jealousy, lack of care, or droll monotony? I feel disheartened.

It's almost as if a real-life interaction with another person means less than an online comment. No matter how many life-changing moments you can share together, it doesn't mean anything unless there's a string of characters posted in the comments within 10 minutes of their latest post.

As a last thought, I offer this bit of advice to all parents bravely attempting to raise a self-respecting youth in today's culture: Tell your kids that they are invaluable and invest in them. Tell them that you love them and that they need not work for your approval. Teach your kids to help others in need and to brighten the smile of at least one person every day. And most of all, be their example.

As always, Good Fortune and Godspeed.

-Mike Knipp