Change...

Why is it so hard for some people to 'change?' I'm not asking for people to change their personalities, or  give themselves a drastic physical makeover, but more 'changing with the times.'

For instance, a common frustration many have with our parent's generation is that they are used to rationing, fixing, re-using and maximising the use of things. Most will say that it stems from the war years, when they had to savour every little morsel of food, soap, piece of toilet paper and match because they didn't know when they will be able to get hold of another. I understand, in someways, it's a good habit to get into, as we have become a wasteful society in many many ways, but there are studies now that suggest that holding onto things too long can cause other problems, like food poisoning and harmful bacterial growth causing dermatitis and other ailments, and some of the older generation continue to do things that make us younger generation shake our heads.

How about religion? Many people are brought up on Faith, having God in their lives and learning the moral codes that make them solid citizens of this world and their religious culture. But, with so many people of high religious positioning, taking advantage of their powers to abuse young children, committing adultery (as I mentioned in a previous blog, there's been a study that 23% of religious ministers have committed adultery after they were ordained), steal from the church and their congregation for their own benefits, but also, why are there such a number of religious wars that are crippling societies and why are there a huge number of children living in poverty in both Third World countries and on our own doorsteps? Why aren't there more people questioning God about what is happening in the world? Most are taught that God is a symbol of peace, joy and humanity, however, there is more emphasis on power, materialism and weapons of mass destruction in this world. The religious faithful would argue that because there has become a lack of faith in the last century is the reasoning behind the negativity and greed in this world creating more reason for wars, but how can that be true, when in centuries gone by with less world population, there were still wars, differences of class and distribution of wealth? Why is it, that the church/synagogues/mosques cannot re-write the Bible, Torah or Quran to reflect the changing morals and human rights of today? After all, it is now considered to be against humanity to have slaves, treat women as non-equals and expect women to be fully clothed in public, amongst other things, but these religious doctrines still condone them. No wonder people are confused and are unsure of what to believe.

Our generation, and our children's generation, love the concept of 'new.' We have been thrown the concept of it through media advertisements and shop windows, and we all want to try something new. So trying 'new' things means we are susceptible to change. I know it infuriates my sisters and I (but we've also accepted that it's just 'mum's' way) that our mum buys an expensive dishwasher, then still rinses her dishes before putting them in the dishwasher (because she's convinced that the dishwasher would never do a good enough job on its own). She then uses a tablespoon of dishwasher powder in her dishwasher (when the recommended amount is double that), rather than buy the specialised dishwasher tablets which would save her half the time. It's not like she hasn't the money to buy the tablets, it's just what she knows and what she's used to.

I'm not saying that 'new' is the be all and end all, we do need to be thankful for the things that we have and not expect to have the good life, high life or materialistic life, and the new generation is being taught a lot about recycling, renewable energies and the impact of our actions on the environment, but they are also being taught to 'think,' 'question' and have a 'voice' about what doesn't sit right with them about the morality, politics and right thing is for this world we live in, rather than 'accepting' that you do what you do because you are told. Yes we can all be idealistic and want the best in our own views, but I feel that those born in the last 40 years, the children of the Baby Boomers, are open to changing their views and opinions on what is best for society and their own social stance constantly rather than retaining a morality or holding onto the simple uneducated lives of their parental heroes that have been the strength of the foundation of their childhood.

Change is for the good... change makes us think, change makes us act, change gives us courage. We need changing perspectives to make the world go round, we just need more people to think more analytically and just do it!