Reach Out and Touch Someone

A few years ago, AT & T encouraged us to "reach out, reach out and touch someone" by giving them a call. It was a pleasant jingle and I'll bet you can recall the tune now that you have the first line. Funny how those things stick with a person -- repetition works.

In their book, The Lonely American: Drifting Apart in the Twenty-First Century, authors Jacqueline Olds and Richard S. Schwartz talk about the effects of loneliness on such things as physical health, child emotional problems, and global warming. I haven't read the book yet, but I'm looking forward to it.

Now, I'm bringing this up, not because I'm feeling particularly lonely this morning but because of the way the generation of 20 somethings seem to have countered it. In the future I think social scientists will refer to this group as the "Cell Phone Generation." I watch them on campus and it seems they all have one of these and would be lost without it.

For Boomers, the cell phone was initially a convenient way to do business in the car. For our children, it's a way to maintain connection across the room. Theirs is the generation joined at the hip. They went to school together, played together and even dated together. A young man I've known for many years once quipped with a smile about young kids' soccer, "It's swarm soccer. No one plays a position, they just swarm after the ball!" Any parent who has witnessed their elementary child on the field must know what I mean.

Well, I think this generation definitely does swarm dating. I've mentioned this to some and they agree. They're so comfortable within their peer group that no one wants anyone to feel left out, so they do everything together. As an older learner, I've directly benefited from being a part of this generation's class.

At first, I was concerned because I feared their mutual dependence might not adequately prepare them to survive in a world that rewarded independence. Now I realize they have a point and a darned good one. Being connected doesn't mean you lose yourself in the herd; instead it means you're nurtured and supported and thus may become an even better self. In a lot of ways the ideal of the self-made man characterized the generation of our parents. Despite the promise of the 60s, many Boomers eventually seemed to resemble their parents more than themselves. Maybe it's something that happens to everyone, but I hope our children are better at maintaining their own identity.

As Baby Boomers age, we have a great deal to gain from emulating the younger generation. Old habits die slowly and it may be very difficult for many to allow themselves to become immersed in a community. But I definitely think the kids have the right idea.