| In this harried era of electronic banking and | | | | they can move gracefully onto the path meant |
| laser surgery, it seems fair to say that | | | | for them. They are not waiting until they are |
| nearly all of us are living life in the fast | | | | "midlife" to have their midlife crisis. They |
| lane. We love our fast food, speed dial, and | | | | are much faster than their predecessors at |
| instant messaging. Today's news is | | | | grasping information and knowing what to do |
| yesterday's news before the sun sets. We are | | | | with it. |
| addicted to speed and if we knew we could get | | | | |
| away with it, we'd put the peddle to the | | | | And yet, satisfyingly enough, the process is |
| metal and drive as fast as the wind blows. | | | | the same for them-no one gets to skip any of |
| | | | the evolution steps. Granted, the younger |
| It should come as no surprise then, that you | | | | generation may be evolving at a faster rate, |
| need not wait for the ripe old age of | | | | but in order to gain the wisdom they seek |
| forty-five to experience a midlife crisis. | | | | they must go through their fitful bouts of |
| I've noticed that many twenty-somethings are | | | | doubt and angst just the same as the rest of |
| already intimately familiar with the | | | | us. They must question everything they |
| phenomenon Wikipedia (free online | | | | thought they knew and come up with their own |
| encyclopedia) defines as "an emotional state | | | | answers. They must feel that first |
| of doubt and anxiety in which a person | | | | uncomfortable, unexplainable nudge that |
| becomes uncomfortable with the realization | | | | becomes an unrelenting restlessness that |
| that life is halfway over. It commonly | | | | can't help but to make them listen to the |
| involves reflection on what the individual | | | | inner voice that wonders is this really my |
| has done with his or her life up to that | | | | destiny? Is this really all I can do for the |
| point, often with feelings that not enough | | | | planet and humankind? |
| was accomplished. The individuals | | | | |
| experiencing such may feel boredom with their | | | | I am encouraged. Their waking pain will be |
| lives, jobs, or their partners, and may feel | | | | the earth's gain. And maybe, just maybe, they |
| a strong desire to make changes in these | | | | will evolve at a pace fast enough to save the |
| areas." | | | | world. |
| | | | |
| I don't see this as a bad thing. Many young | | | | Copyright 2007 - Mary M. Bauer. All Rights |
| people are already deep into the process of | | | | Reserved Worldwide. |
| examining what life means to them and how | | | | |