Youth is Wasted on Our Young

[Niger Angelus]

'"youth is wasted on our young

It is this that I have feared the most, that has came to pass.
I was told something the other day that burned inside my bones. Someone said this phrase, "The youth is wasted on our young." At first I was outraged. I wanted to fight back and defend my generation. I wanted to prove how ignorant that statement was. But before the words could escape my lips, I was tormented with how true that statement is. For those who do not understand: what that means is this.... Youth: meaning the point of our lives when we are the most energetic and the most healthy and the most full of passion, is being wasted on our young people, meaning you and me. Our generation. I could not sleep that night because of how disgusted I was. Not, just because somone said it, but mainly because I could not prove it wrong. The statement, unfortunately, is true for the most part. Here we are, with the most energy that we will ever have and absolute health and few to no bills to pay, and what does the average young person do with all of that................sits around and watches tv, or plays on some technological waste of time, or worse yet, they waste all of that energy and zeal on drugs or alcohol, Items that were created for no other reason than to alter your state of mind. Why would anyone want their state of mind to be altered? What has happened to our world that would make someone want to alter his or her existance while we are at our prime age in life and prime strength. To complete the meaning of this old familier phrase it is also stating that adults; like people that are old and older, could better use this "youthfullness" because they have lived long enough to realize that we are all going to die someday, and as a matter of fact, that someday, is soon, and these elders are saying that they would actually do something useful with this, "youthfullness." So we ask ourselves, "Why would they use it so much more passionately and with so much more greatfulness than us young folks?" Well that is easy, because through thier years on this earth they have come to learn that most everything is trivial. And life, as far as on this earth, is short. So they are saying that if they had it to do over they would use thier energy to the fullest extent and there passions would be spent on items that actually mattered and there lives would be much fuller and richer lives. What they are also saying is that, they too, have wasted there youthfullness. Because, they are saying that only now, have they realized that life is so short and most of it is wasted on trivial things or technological advances that do nothing but keep us lazy and dependent on the technology itself. So I say," no!" I am not going to be a part of that stupid phrase. I am still young. I still have energy and passions and zeal and I still have my life. I will not sit back and watch it all go while I stare at a box with moving pixels. I will not be another wasted youth and grow up only to realize that I should have followed my dreams more or always asking, "what if this or what if that." I will not. Isn't that why we are here on earth, to learn from other people's mistakes so that as each generation grows we grow wiser and wiser still. What happened to that? Where are the people who actually care anymore? Is there anyone that cares enough to actually try to be different? Does anyone actually NOT want to be exacly like everyone else? I know that it is easy to just copycat every other person in the world. But isn't there anybody who cares? Am I the only one who cares? Am I the only one that sees this downward spiral going on? I think not. I think that there are many more people that have thought about such things. But I also think far too many people just give up............ on thier dreams.................. on thier goals............on thier life. I know way too many people who have not seen the ocean. Do not die having never seen the ocean. Do not wait until you are stuck in the cycle of life and work and sleep, to realize that maybe you should have gone to see the ocean, or any other form of God's amazing works. Don't exit this earth asking, "what if this dream could have came true." You don't ever have to think, 'what if I would have only done ___________?" You never have to think that because we still have today. We have right now. Turn dreams into goals and get them accomplished. Or at least try. I apologize for the length of this passage, but I can not get that out of my head. I want to also apologize to my wife and my band because they had to hear me go on about this topic for hours. I love you all. And I want to leave you with this, so that maybe it will click and it will change your life as much as it has changed mine.

"The youth is waisted on our young"'
-Josh Scogin
The Chariot
So what do you all think?

[ January 28, 2005, 12:54 AM: Message edited by: Niger Angelus ]

[Mr. Blonde]

If this all is the case, I think that wisdom is wasted on our elderly.

[ January 28, 2005, 01:16 AM: Message edited by: Mr. Blonde ]

[Niger Angelus]

That can be a very valid statement. Are we just destined to form regret with age no matter what? Always left with the 'what-ifs'. Is there ever any real content?

[ January 28, 2005, 01:19 AM: Message edited by: Niger Angelus ]

[the Butcher]

Before I had scrolled down all the way, I was wondering if you would give him credit. I saw that article a few months ago. I figured it was the same one...and it was. It's a great message, but I don't agree with all of it.

[Niger Angelus]

I always give credit where it be due.