Looking around, I see kids checking their phones. Their faces light up when they see how many ‘likes’ they get on their Instagram posts. And when I say kids, I literally mean 10 to 12 year olds just tweeting about whatever drama they have going on at school and their hard knock life. I can tell this generation is too eager to grow up. Young girls are wearing shorts and crop tops with their stomachs out.
When I was their age, all I wore were basketball shorts, running shoes and high frilly socks. I wanted to kick the ball around and ride my bike with my friends. I didn’t care about makeup and if my hair looked frizzy. Being a kid at that age was all about having fun and dreaming about my future. I wanted to be a teacher or a professional basketball player.
When I was younger, some of my favorite TV shows included the “PowerPuff Girls,” “Dexter’s Laboratory,” “Goosebumps,” “Even Stevens” and “Recess.” Turning on the TV now, they have these super lame and corny shows. “Girl Meets World?” The show just isn’t funny. Plus it makes me feel old.
I didn’t have a cell phone until I was a sophomore in high school. And when I finally did get one, it was some basic phone that couldn’t take photos. Nowadays, these kids have the new Smartphones. It’s all about what’s new and faster.
Growing up before the technological age makes me miss my childhood. It was full of innocence and laughter, with not a care in the world. Back when there were good shows and I didn’t have to dress to impress. I learned by doing and did my homework on paper instead of using an iPad. I had to learn to hold a conversation and talk to adults when I was younger. It kills me when I go out to a restaurant and I see the kids playing games on their parents’ phones.
Have we really relied that much on technology that we need them to entertain our kids? We need it to teach our kids basic math? This generation of kids are missing out on the simplicities of life. Having them rely so much on technology at such a young age disrupts their youth. Please teach your kids to go outside and play with a stick in the dirt.
There’s no imagination. It’s being killed by video games and television. “There’s an app for that” is such a common phrase in this generation. Has anyone seen the movie Wall-E? Remember the part where the fat people were rolling around on those chairs, not using their brains for anything but consumption of advertisements telling them what’s best? That’s what this generation is being exposed to. Consumption and applications.
Technology isn’t a bad thing. It’s only when there’s too much involvement in technology that causes kids to be concerned about the wrong things. They lose their imagination through watching mind-numbing TV and being taught that being a grown up is fun. Well I have bad news, whoever said being a grown up would be fun lied.
