By Pippa Starr
26 November 2020
“I believe the children are our future Teach them well and let them lead the way Show them all the beauty they possess inside Give them a sense of pride To make it easier Let the children's laughter remind us how we used to be”
In 1977 Micheal Masser wrote and released those lyrics as part of the hit song
“The Greatest Love of All”
To a degree those lyrics were not only pertinent in that era when the world was seemingly beginning to get a little better after dealing with conflicts like the Vietnam war, but also sent a message to all those who heard them to start to think about our children’s future for once.
It would not take very long though, till famous ex lead singer of “The Police” , Gordon Sumner – aka Sting would again remind us all in 1984 with his message of
“I hope the Russians love their Children too” as a cold war between the USA & Russia continued.
So what has all this got to do with the price of rice in China and how relevant are these messages today in 2020?
I think part of the answer is made by the way one of the greatest artists of our time Whitney Houston passed.
In 1986 she sold Micheal Masser’s message to more people across the world than nearly any other. It’s a message with a very noble sentiment of considering the futures of the generations to come and indeed today that is highly relevant as we quickly surpass irreversible effects of climate change and all to often still see our youth hooked on drugs.
Have we not learned anything from our past?
Most who recognise and appreciate Whitney Houston and Sting are now the adults of the next wave of the children that will help to shape and determine their future.
So it really does beg the question if those lyrics are relevant in 2020.
Should an updated version be:
“We are adults from the past
We have stuffed up along the way
We forgot to be adults and keep children in mind
We lost our sense of pride
To make it easier
We handed our kids Ipads now they fail with their own identities”
Damming and confronting lyrics, right?
Let’s not gloss over what we have failed in though, it may not have been our fault but like it or not being adult means taking the responsibility.
We see each and every day across a myriad of issues that adults have become entrenched in a game of shirking responsibility and often making it someone else’s fault yet are often not prepared to instigate positive change for future generations.
Let’s start by realising how a saying steeped in a defined coating of sarcasm like “OK, Boomer” came to be a huge part of the current vernacular of younger people.
In one short statement they are saying a lot, yet until the "boomers" stop to ask for a reference point they will lose a great opportunity to learn why someone might actually say that.
It is imperative that it is seen as a point of entry into making positive dialogue with the future custodians of our earth, rather than shirk it or dismiss it.
It appears for the last 30 odd years adult-ing has become a blame game across the world and it really has to stop. The world depends on it!
If the aging minds from previous generations don’t begin to stop blaming and start taking responsibility for the wrongs of the past, that effect massive issues like climate change, health, social and political disengagement then what will be their legacy, what will the future for the next 30 years look like?