Are We Growing Up—or Not?
More people 18 to 49 watch The Cartoon Network than CNN. Is that a sign that people are taking longer and longer to grow up? Or is it a commentary on the quality of CNN’s programming and news coverage? It’s one of many questions to be pondered from author Diana West.
The Washington Times columnist has written a book called The Death of the Grown-Up, and she writes that one of our society’s biggest issues is arrested development. West concludes since a majority of people in their 20s are now single (including three out of every four young men) this is a certain sign of the demise of our culture.
I think we can all agree that if you’re 28, intentionally jobless and the release of Halo 3 is the highlight of 2007 for you, you probably are lingering in the adolescent phase a bit too long. But to state the reason why people are waiting until 27, 28 or later to get married is because they are postponing adulthood is an adventure in missing the point. A primary reason people are waiting longer to get married because the divorce rate is 50 percent and they have seen the wreckage and pain created in half of our society. Maybe they’re just being careful before they attach themselves to another for life. Perhaps they are trying to make sure their life is headed down the right path before they invest their lives totally in another person.
What’s your view?
About the Author
Jim Johnston has worked in a variety of roles, ranging from marketing to publishing to Internet development. Prior to coming to LifeWay, he worked as a reporter and editor for the Montgomery Advertiser and also as an adult-in-missions editor at the Brotherhood Commission in Memphis. Jim and his wife Tammy have been married for 23 years and have two sons, Spenser, 17, and Ethan, 10.
There have been 3 replies so far
My 21 year old daughter often reminds me that my generation doesn’t want to grow up(baby boomer) or grow older.Actually,I’m too serious most of the time and I wish I could freeze myself where I am at 49.Growing up is hard work and no one seems to want to do that anymore.
1 | hawkgirl
Friday, September 28, 2007, at 8:00pm
I agree. The problem may be that NO ONE wants to grow up any more and that the world’s problems are becoming so complex that we feel like throwing up our hands. The key is the hope of Christ in us that allows to handle these kind of things, even when we see ourselves as less than “wise grown-ups.”
2 | Jim Johnston
Monday, October 1, 2007, at 1:42pm
Being close to “thirtysomething”, mooching off your parents and still living in their basement with “blogging” or “gaming” as the highlight of one’s day is a definite sign of young adults remaining somewhat childlike.
I have to admit though, sometimes triggering the remote is a great escape from the harsh reality of the blows life has dealt and sometimes to forget the stupidity of my own poor choices and how I have caused pain to others. There are so many reasons for a single adult to remain unmarried other than just wanting to escape adulthood though. My daughter has more of a grip on what she wants out of a relationship than I ever did and I’m proud to say she refuses to compromise & is determined to live out what God has planned for her. She knows and believes He has something else for her life than just to “grow up” and marry the first bloke that comes along. Her heart seems to be leading her into missions and to take the word of Christ to a lost world. Wow, she is waaaay smarter and thinks on a much higher scale than I ever seemed to be capable. I am thankful to God for His protective wisdom over her heart, mind and life. So sometimes when people don’t seem as if they are “growing up” as quickly as society may want to force one to believe should, maybe it’s that certain people have “grown wiser.”
3 | sunriseforHim
Sunday, October 7, 2007, at 9:49pm
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