Online Reporter
Sometimes as a mature person (another term for one who is aging), I take time to sit and watch young people.
As I watch them, I go down memory lane, remembering the time when I was their age. I remember once having a flood of energy as I went about my chores.
There are still many things that I can do, and I do them so well. For that I am thankful. I am able to do work. The speed, though, is not the same. I have realised that if I want to maintain the same speed when I was in my 30s or 40s, my body asks me questions that I cannot answer.
The questions include, what are you trying to prove? Have you forgotten how old you are?
I admire the energy with which young people get things done. I was at a church meeting this week and watched the young volunteers going about their assigned roles.
I watched them lift many chairs at a time, when I could only lift two. Within a short space of time, neatly stacked rows of chairs were ready for people to sit. The young people with their energy would get the job done, and being anaMai (Mother) anaBaba (Fathers) we would just admire their energy.
At times we would attempt to lift items, but they would not allow us. At meal times, we would gladly find our way to the senior citizen queue and get priority. Initially I thought that I did not qualify to be a senior citizen and waited with others to allow the older persons pass through.
Someone approached me and took me to the senior citizens queue. I am sure that they looked at my hair and concluded that I was in the wrong queue! The ordinary adults queue would be adjacent to the priority queue.
Of course, someone looked at me and wondered why I was in that queue because they thought I was their peer. During the course of the week, one had guts to ask me.
One of the most important life phases is the youthful years. During these years, one gets to make decisions that have an immense effect on the rest of their lives. It is during the youthful years that one decides which path they would like to pursue. The choice of friends one hangs out with are made during this time. Young people these days face a lot of challenges. I am sure that someone will say in the past, they still had challenges too. I agree.
Challenges are there for every generation. Given that the world is now a global village, the challenges that are faced are influenced by other issues. I remember saying to someone who did not understand how the young people behave that the hormones that the young people have are the same ones that we had too when we were young.
As adolescent girls there were things that we did. We had our circle of friends. The young people too have their own friends. While in most instances, in our times, our friend circles were virtual, nowadays young people have hybrid relationships! They have close links with some people that they have never met physically! Complicated? Your answer depends who you are and your age.
Even as adults, we now have hybrid relationships. As one gets older, they are better placed to make boundaries and take responsibility for their actions. When young, one maybe afraid of losing relationships simply because they said no.
On Wednesday just after the Heroes and Defence Forces Day holidays, it was International Youth Day. This year’s theme; “Different Contexts, Common Aspirations” recognised that while young people live in different areas and have their lives shaped by what happens in their home countries and how they are brought up, their challenges are similar.
The theme focused on young people from least developed countries, landlocked countries and small island countries.
The health of young people is at risk due to many conditions. Some young people are not as active as previous generations used to be. Some are prone to non-communicable diseases because of their lifestyles.
In some instances, parents and guardians are contributing to these lifestyles as they no longer want their children to eat the wholesome food because now they can afford takeaways.
The parents or guardians look at the food that raised them to be what they are now as backward! As a result their children’s food is more skewed towards fast and instant food. While the parents think they are doing their children a great service, they are contributing to conditions that will be difficult to get rid of. Surprisingly some parents claim that their children do not like traditional food, yet they have no exposure to such foods.
In this digital age, some young people are tech-savvy. The effect on their health includes bad eye sight and even obesity. Young people glued to their gadgets fail at times to communicate effectively with other people because they are used to being in the digital space.
Young people need guidance regarding their health. It can only be possible if the community in which they live is supportive.
They are aware of what they want, at times how they intend to attain their goals may need a bit of panel-beating by adults and the community. Whatever life choices the young people make now has immense impact on their adult years. It can build a shaky or firm foundation as far as their health is concerned.
