Did the Woodstock Generation Lose Its Way?

( I wrote this post for Aging Abundantly over ten years ago. It was one of the first. In light of our present circumstances I thought it worth resurrecting. DJS 11-18-2019)

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REMEMBER THE CRY AGAINST MATERIALISM?

Every day I’m a little more amazed at the materialism in our country. Even as many of us struggle to tighten our budgets and find ways to survive despite lost wages, the majority of our citizens live abundantly by the world’s standards.  We are blessed, and we seemed to find it difficult to be grateful.

The Woodstock generation was a generation committed to living a life of meaning and purpose. In the late 60’s and early 70’s, when I was in college, we collectively railed against materialism. We believed it to be the antithesis of a meaningful life, and climbing the soul-numbing  corporate ladder was not for us. We would find meaning and purpose in our day to day work life, and not work to live and live to work. Our generation would make a difference, and forgo luxury for the betterment of society. Or so I thought.

LIFE INTERVENES FOR US ALL

A couple of years ago I awoke from the hyper focused life of child rearing to discover that my generation, as a whole, had sold out. We had reared our children in abject indulgence! Perhaps we were lying to ourselves in the 60’s. Or maybe the Woodstock generation didn’t realize how difficult it would be to live out our convictions. Perhaps our youthful hearts were simply enamored with the notion of peace, love and rock and roll! What 19-year-old isn’t smitten by such things?  But, I don’t want to believe we were that shallow.

I bucked society choosing to stay at home with my children. It wasn’t easy. I felt like a failure too much of the time. My friends and peers were “doing it all”.  I wondered why I found such a life an impossible option.  I clung to my conviction that my children would be happier, better adjusted adults if my husband and I cared for them.  It would go better for them if they were not relegated to a life of day care and nannies.  Their Mom and Dad would be there when they needed them and we’d share dinner together every day of the week.

Now that they are young adults, it’s hard to assess them impact of our commitment. How would one measure such a thing? What I do know is that I love them like every parents loves their children and I wouldn’t have done it any other way. I also feel blessed that my sons are good, responsible, kind and loving people who value family and dinner around a table. Right now, that’s enough for me.

WOODSTOCK GENERATION VS. THE CORPORATE LADDER

Most of the members of my generation of peace, love and hippie beads chose to climb the corporate ladder and do nothing about health care or free-flowing illegal immigration. We can blame the government all we want for these problems but we are to blame. We elected the officials that were to see to matters at hand. I did not see anyone speaking loudly about our dissatisfaction over the years or asking to make changes in the way we believed we would. Me included. What I did see, however, was many of my classmates with their nose to grindstone working diligently at careers to better the world. My classmates became teachers, counselors, social workers, doctors, members of the clergy. They helped people at the grass roots level.

Now, I find myself in the “middle years” with more issues than I ever dreamed I would, financial, social and otherwise. Perhaps it’s time to start a new revolution; to ferret out the lost hippies of yesteryear and reignite the flame to put meaning back into our lives – whatever that is.  We must reawaken the optimism of our youth, add the wisdom we have amassed, and begin again to make a difference.  Now. There are no more tomorrows. It’s time to go back to the core values we left at Woodstock and make the world a better place. Care to join me?

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