Youth Today

 Yes, January 12 is the Youth Day. Sure it is celebrated in the memory of Swami Vivekananda, an eternal fount of positive energy, creativity and vigour, the basic most qualities of the ideal youth. We shall discuss in depth the great Swamiji and his life, his work some other time. 

Today let us talk about our 'famed across the world' democratic dividend; namely, our youth. Yes, we have the largest number of start-up's. True, we have very many unicorn companies. These young entrepreneurs and their young employees would be roughly two lakhs tops.

How about the rest of the vast majority? Are they really in a position and/or condition we can celebrate? Are they properly educated? Are they knowledgeable? Do they have both, the hard and the soft, skills required for a job? Are they full of the exemplary rigour, the magical vision, the genuine idealism one always associates with the youthful feel?

Well, across such barriers as class, gender, the urban/rural divide, the answers to such, and many other such, questions seem to be rather depressing. The youth today seem to suffer from the 'dis-ease' of limited goals and materialistic objectives. Their ambition seems to be to fit in to the consumerist goals the market forces assign them. 

Actually, as mostly the only child, or mostly two children, of the family, they are really much indulged. The educational facilities are infinite. Yet they seem to lack the drive. Nor do they have much empathy for the needy. They are happy with easy answers. No wonder, Google is their Guru! The exceptions to such profiles do exist, but they are in minority. Self obsessed almost to excess is the defining feature of the young today.

Youth, hence, one can assert authentically is not an age group. Youth is the feel of the abundant energy of clean dreams that are ever inclusive, and which make the dreamer in to a better, and better, person. Such vibrant celebration makes the real youth forever lasting, whatever might be the chronological age!

Pratima@ "Ah, to be young, that is heaven", as Wordsworth says, though the tense he uses is the simple past as he was talking about the French revolution, the youthful dream of a new beginning.