Reason for optimism
Every day we see it - disturbing news everywhere, from inflation to wars to pollution to generational differences. Can we do something about it? Absolutely. We can’t fix everything ourselves but there are things we can control. We can think and act differently. It can be a conscious decision.The bigger things we have to do together, as a community (local and global) and I’m very confident there is change. Younger people, and many of the not-so-young, no longer accept what has been. They want better.
People are, for instance, rejecting pollution and environmental destruction (especially the young) - and we’re going to succeed. It’s on. The climate change argument is over. Regardless, we want to breathe clean air and look after the environment. I think we should stop seeing ourselves as separate from the environment, rather as a part of it. Maybe then we would sit up and take notice.
Much is made of generational differences as well. That topic has always had a life of it’s own, and it can be very pervasive. Of course there are differences - we evolve - but I talk ‘era’ these days, and much less about Gen z, Gen x, baby boomers or any other age group. ‘Era’ is inclusive. It should be. It is our era, now. It doesn’t matter if we’re 9 or 99. We’re all here, right now, affected by the same things. It’s an inclusive, community approach, and it works. It also has the effect of dissolving any unfortunate tendency to disregard the elderly, to value them, their experience and their wisdom. We can think differently.
If we’re going to have families, children, we owe it to them to spend at least a part of our lives making the world a better place. They didn’t ask to be born. There is a difference between breeding children and raising them.
Oh, and beware of those who mistake pessimism for realism, who use negativity as an excuse to achieve nothing, change nothing, or drag others back into their small world. Optimists make things happen. Don’t let your optimism be dimmed by others. Optimism makes bad good, and good, better.