Being a youth sounds fascinating; only to those who aren’t yet or anymore. Growing up, my grandfather always said that connecting to young people is one of the hardest things to do. Being one of these young people I understood, the hard way, that the real difficulty is for us to connect with society.
United Nations defines “Youth” as the age group ranging from 15 years to 25 years. Ironically, these are the most essential 10 years of every human being’s life. When I first stepped into my youth, it was a feeling of excitement. Coming out of that protective shell is the first sense of freedom a lot of us experience. The infamous wings are indeed very real. However, I feel a lot of people miss out on the ideals and principles this hot-blooded segment of society wants to bring.
Talking about ideals and principles, it was not a long time ago that my aunt addressed me with the topic of relationships. Being a woman in her late 50s, she was talking about her experience as a lady in this society. It was much of a shock to me that even in these progressive times, a relationship was no more than a contract to her. When I was told to behave like a girl and sit in a mannered way, the youth in me was enraged. When I was told that the so-called concepts of feminism and equality are only limited to the books, I chose to defy that. As a youth, I believe I deserve to make my own choices, learn from my own mistakes, make new mistakes and find new solutions and make myself a better person every day.
There is a saying, “The youths of today will be the leaders of tomorrow.” The better tomorrow will only come into existence if we work on it today. There have been incidents when we are rejected from doing something we can excel in, for the sole purpose of being youth. Society today needs to understand that experience is not the prime determinant of success. Even to gain the experience we need to start somewhere. As a youth, I deserve to be allowed to prove myself. As a youth, I dream to come out of this society that criticizes those who chase their dreams. I want to change this society that demands musicians to become engineers and doctors and writers to become housewives and corporate robots.
We are the strata submerged in the wave of technology. Every coin has two sides and likewise, this too does. But if we look at the bright side we have moved the surge of technology to such an extent where the world is actually going towards the desirable change. The constant apprise of social media has enabled bitcoins and cryptocurrencies which are excelling the economy of the globe. Previously unbothered youngsters are getting to know the condition of the world and voicing their political thoughts. The Internet has given a significant platform to an age group that was previously discarded.
We as youth are blooming with positivity. Our view of the world is very different from that of the other generations. When one talks about the latest concepts, the first thing that comes to my mind is bringing about a change. A change is not just a result of an evolving economy but the mentality of the people. As a youth, I want to see a world different from the one we are living in. A world where discrimination does not exist, everyone is accepted and no societal benchmarks are set for people to achieve. We are big on mental health. It is a topic of taboo that we want to normalize. We want people to come out and express themselves, give them a place to be strong without feeling entitled and vulnerable without feeling weak.
Traditions are very important, I believe, as it plays a role in shaping ourselves. But, exploitation in the name of tradition is not what today’s youth are going to accept. We are often called ‘Big mouth’, inexperienced, idealists with no trace of reality, but wasn’t there a time when the entire idea of civil society seemed ideal too? As a youth, I believe that the world we aim for is achievable; rather, we will work all together to make it happen.
When the child in me was disappointed to learn that in reality rainbows are rare and most of the world is either black or white, my youth taught me that it is much between these two colors where we really find ourselves. Being a youth has taught me that I am much more than what society tells me I am.