Beyond the reckless and feckless youth
Arlene M. Paredes
Published in the January 20, 2000 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer.
What does the youth of today have to offer in the future if they continue bumming around at shindigs everywhere?
Right now, we disobey our parents, we cram for exams, we text incessantly, we eat and breathe party, we drown ourselves with booze and smoke. We scream for independence. We want our own style. But tomorrow, the next years, what are we going to do? Running for important political titles? Maintaining large-scale businesses? Creating an all-digital environment?
But are we heading in that direction?
Amid teenage pregnancies, early marriages, drug addiction and violence, our elders may conclude that our future is one of failure. It seems to them that our increasingly growing knowledge of the world is leading to self-destruction. Even our contemporaries look at how we enjoy life so much and think it’s impossible for us to get anywhere.
Is there hope for the Filipino youth? Listen to what they have got to say:
I think we are more modern and exposed to the reality if life. Thus, we are more open-minded and mature in dealing with different matters and handling different situations. – Juneth Nitro, 19, UP Los Baños.
We are more adventurous nowadays. We tend to experiment a lot and this makes us nonconformists. We lack identity and we are easily persuaded by the latest hype. It is not good. – Benjo Bergado, 19, UP Diliman.
We are so liberated. Maraming alam. Curious. – Gretz R. Bautista, 19, Fatima College.
We are so aggressive in many ways and aspects. Ang dami nating gustong I-explore. – Regilyn Dimaculangan, 18, UP Diliman.
I think they are more aggressive, persistent and more interested in wordly matters, not to mention that they no longer observe Filipino values. – Greg Wilson, 24, Cagayan de Oro.
GenXers are a bunch of kids who are all style but no substance. – Emerlito Paredes, 19, La Salle graduate.
Most Filipino youth don’t have respect for the elders anymore. Before we practiced pagmamano. – Al Loyola, 20, Baguio.
The Filipino youth now have lost majority of their values. These GenXers have to be taught a lesson. – Raul Santos, 21, Dumaguete.
The Filipino youth is more aggressive today than ever. They need to control lives is growing every day. – Leonida Paredes, 19, DLSU – Dasmariñas.
We are greatly affected by Western cultures to the point that our own identity seems to be diminishing with each passing generation. It goes the same for the moral values and traditions that our forefathers had passed on to us. – Earl Caymo, 19, UPLB.
Basically, we are more aggressive, not afraid to die, happy go lucky, yet far more advanced with the times. We have a good sense of humor, though! – Curt Peralta, 20, Manila.
Filipino youths are generally self-centered. Nothing matters more than themselves. – Noel Balana, 19.
We are a mix of everything. I believe that most of us do think. I mean really think! There are things inside our mind that we care about. We are concerned not only with our love life and our allowances. We think about politics. We think about the environment. We think about religion or – better – about faith. We don’t want to be bums all the time. We want something and that something depends on each and every one of us. Given a chance, we can show what we really are worth. – Remar Zamora, UP Diliman.
Now, that’s the youth spirit!
Our Time
Some adults would look at us from head to toe, criticize about fashion and complain about our lifestyle, perpetually comparing us to their generation without batting an eyelash. They are firmly suspicious of what we do. They sigh, “Ang mga kabataan nga naman ngayon.”
Are we being unfairly misjudged or is there really something wrong with us?
Beaver Flores, UPLB graduate and a member of the UPLB Development Communicator’s Society explains, “The so-called ‘elders’ of society are too old to understand our travails and mishaps. This is our time. It’s true what the Blue Ice commercial says. The technological advancements that our parents have long dreamed of and have gone to immeasurable depths to attain are the real reasons why we are acting this way. In short, they’ve got a taste of their own medicine.”
He added, “We are too lazy and too proud to admit that we are indeed the future of mankind. Technology has increased our level of materialistic dependence. Values are now a thing of the past. Though it’s cool to live in a liberal society sometimes, there are times when the good old-fashioned values still apply. Nagmamano pa rin ako sa lolo ko.”
Prejudged
Of course, there are cynics who don’t believe that we can make a difference. But then again, maybe there is really a problem, after all. When was the last time you did something significant for others? When was the last time you helped you community? When was the last time you thought about school and did not think about it in a bad light? When was the last time you put your compelling words into effective actions?
Sometimes we get prejudged. Sometimes we don’t really get it. But we are constantly searching, learning and discovering the things we can do to affect the world positively and thus, allow it to turn around progressively. It’s easy enough for some to overlook our efforts. But we can try harder – not just to please adults but to realize our maximum potentials. If we keep on asking ourselves for more, if we keep on trying harder, then we are going to trudge the path to a better world.
The parties may never stop. But that’s because we have endless reasons to celebrate. Our minds. Our views. Our accomplishments. Soon enough, the pessimists will regret ever having doubted us.
