You are speaking my mind. I’m 69 and still have teenagers at home. I keep debating myself about what resource is most lacking— money, time, or energy. But these are debates we have in our heads when what is actually missing is “the village.” I doubt my parents had these debates in their heads nearly as often or intensely.
Ahaha - if I'm speaking your mind, it's because I've been reading yours in print form for years 😆
Something I have been thinking about a lot recently is the changing social contract and capitalism. I feel like we are waking up to this too slowly, and still imagining we live in a world where:
-We have kids, one parent works hard while the other takes care of the kids. The family does it tough financially for a few years, but eventually owns a freehold home.
-The kids move out as late teens, eventually buying their own home and repeating the process.
-A carefree retirement of travel, relaxation and occasional babysitting is our reward for years of hard work, before our bodies begin to pack it in and we are cared for by our family.
Yet this hasn't been the reality for years for many minority groups, and middle-class white folk are either in shock or denial that this is unlikely to be their future. As difficult as it is, there are some interesting and hopeful possibilities for how we envisage living life more interdependently. But it will certainly a difficult transition for those of us who expected to have the majority of our years living uninterrupted lives in our own homes.
You are speaking my mind. I’m 69 and still have teenagers at home. I keep debating myself about what resource is most lacking— money, time, or energy. But these are debates we have in our heads when what is actually missing is “the village.” I doubt my parents had these debates in their heads nearly as often or intensely.
Ahaha - if I'm speaking your mind, it's because I've been reading yours in print form for years 😆
Something I have been thinking about a lot recently is the changing social contract and capitalism. I feel like we are waking up to this too slowly, and still imagining we live in a world where:
-We have kids, one parent works hard while the other takes care of the kids. The family does it tough financially for a few years, but eventually owns a freehold home.
-The kids move out as late teens, eventually buying their own home and repeating the process.
-A carefree retirement of travel, relaxation and occasional babysitting is our reward for years of hard work, before our bodies begin to pack it in and we are cared for by our family.
Yet this hasn't been the reality for years for many minority groups, and middle-class white folk are either in shock or denial that this is unlikely to be their future. As difficult as it is, there are some interesting and hopeful possibilities for how we envisage living life more interdependently. But it will certainly a difficult transition for those of us who expected to have the majority of our years living uninterrupted lives in our own homes.