The other day my 15 year niece and nephew (8 year old) were playing with my iPad. And my niece quipped to my nephew, "You must be lucky. I never had anything like this while I was like you".
And i thought, at least 4 generations in my family can get away with a statement like that. The exposure my son receives at 2.5 yrs is way beyond what I received even at thrice his age. The facilities,the gadgets and a whole host of other things that I enjoy now are way beyond what my father had and enjoyed at this age. The same holds true when I compare my father and grand mother.
All this sounds really progressive and great at one level. However at the other end, I feel, life was a lot less complicated in the earlier generations. A lot more simple, a lot more contented and enjoyable. People were happy waiting for a phone connection for 10 years and perfectly fine waiting 15 years for becoming a proud owner of a Bajaj scooter. Sticking to one employer for a lifetime and settling for a 2 BHK at the end of it was probably the norm and not an aberration.
Its not entirely about settling for a lesser quality of life, I think it has a lot more to do with carrying a better attitude. So, the moot question is, are we really progressing? I guess, like may things in life, the answer is neither simple nor universal. It is probably uniquely tied with ones attitude and approach to life itself.
And i thought, at least 4 generations in my family can get away with a statement like that. The exposure my son receives at 2.5 yrs is way beyond what I received even at thrice his age. The facilities,the gadgets and a whole host of other things that I enjoy now are way beyond what my father had and enjoyed at this age. The same holds true when I compare my father and grand mother.
All this sounds really progressive and great at one level. However at the other end, I feel, life was a lot less complicated in the earlier generations. A lot more simple, a lot more contented and enjoyable. People were happy waiting for a phone connection for 10 years and perfectly fine waiting 15 years for becoming a proud owner of a Bajaj scooter. Sticking to one employer for a lifetime and settling for a 2 BHK at the end of it was probably the norm and not an aberration.
Its not entirely about settling for a lesser quality of life, I think it has a lot more to do with carrying a better attitude. So, the moot question is, are we really progressing? I guess, like may things in life, the answer is neither simple nor universal. It is probably uniquely tied with ones attitude and approach to life itself.
