The Luckiest Generation
Issue #212
A few weeks back it was my granddaughter’s birthday.
We spent the morning decorating the house. Balloons, small ribbons, and a little cake made by her chachi. She watched every detail with wide, excited eyes.
Later she tore open her gifts with the kind of joy only children carry.
I found myself wondering something.
Will she ever get to enjoy this phase the way we are enjoying it as grandparents?
I think of this often because today’s world looks nothing like the one we grew up in. Many young couples marry late. They wait longer before having a child. Some choose not to have one at all. Work takes most of their time. Traffic takes the rest. Somewhere in that rush, the shape of family shifts.
When I look back at my own life, I feel my generation, those of us born in the 60s, might be the luckiest of all.
We had a dream childhood. Our parents did not worry when we played outside for hours. We walked or cycled to school without fear. We came home by afternoon, ate what was cooked, finished homework, and ran out again to play.
The neighbourhood itself raised us. Every uncle and aunt felt responsible. Every friend’s home felt like your own.
Life had trust. And trust made life simple.
Compare that with today.
The world feels different socially. You hear it in conversations, you see it in the news, and you sense it in the way people lock their doors and guard their children. The social fabric is thinner. People hold stronger opinions and weaker patience.
Many parents do not feel safe letting their children step out alone. Children grow up on screens because the outdoors does not feel the same anymore.
We are moving from a high trust world to a low trust society.
Our childhood had no screens. No endless notifications. No digital noise. The only distraction was a cricket match on the neighbour’s radio. Friendships were built outside, not online.
Then, just when we stepped into work life, technology arrived at the perfect time.
Computers came in. Mobile phones followed. Email replaced letters. The internet changed business.
We were old enough to handle technology and young enough to learn it fast. It lifted our careers. It opened our minds. It gave us chances our parents never had.
We got the best of both worlds, the innocence of an analogue childhood and the reach of a digital adulthood.
Now, as we enter our 50s and 60s, healthcare is advancing faster than ever. Better scans, better medicines, better understanding of food, sleep, and movement. Healthspan is improving at the exact stage when we need it most.
Our parents never had this.
Because of that, many of us will see our grandchildren grow up. Some may even see great grandchildren.
But will the next generation get the same chance? If they marry late, start families late, and grow old in a more stressful, more divided world. I am not sure.
My generation has lived through a rare arc: a simple childhood, a transforming country, a technology boom that lifted our lives, and healthcare that keeps us going.
We were born in one world and built another. Now we get to watch a new one rise through our grandchildren.
What do you think? Let me know.👇
Speakers at The Growth Retreat 4.0
The annual met of Communion members is happening 18-21st December at Pune. 65 participants this year sharing their knowledge and learning from some of the countries best.
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