GENERATION GAP
A fascinating theme that coursed through many of the conversations during the L2 conference I attended last weekend in Chicago was the generation gap between our parents (1st generation) and us (2nd). Many of us noted that while our parents are no less political than we, they were apt to be involved with homeland politics or with country-specific causes here in the US, whereas we were more apt to seek out pan-Asian issues. Our parents’ identity crises are related to their duality of citizenship, whether literally or not; our hyphenations are less about our countries of origin and more about being simultaneously Asian and American.
In our community development affinity group, we talked about the uneasiness or outright disapproval many of our parents communicated to us about our career choices. One participant mentioned that it was because of an immigrant’s natural desire, having worked hard to give his or children economic opportunities and financial security, to see the next generation garner lucrative and prestigious jobs. But I countered that while I might not end up earning as much as my dad did in his engineering career, I wasn’t making bad money; and my career path might end up garnering me more prestige and influence than him.
Rather, I offered, our parents’ generation definition of work was fundamentally different from ours. Work was a vehicle to provide for family, a means to a greater end. Technical careers, and therefore technical educations, were particularly sought after, because they allowed for a maximum of financial reward with a minimum of job risk. And in fact, for many in my generation, it is the same approach to work and career.
But for those justice-minded of my peers, work is a means to another, different end: for Christians, an opportunity to seek God’s kingdom and to right social wrongs. Again, such vocational trajectories may afford us greater honor than our parents, rather than less; we may end up as famous social change agents or respected community leaders or even powerful political officials. But our jobs will be less technical and more encompassing than those sought out by our parents and encouraged in their children, that of doctors and engineers and lawyers.
It was fascinating to explore these generational gaps with other like-minded peers. Faith, the immigration experience, and American values have all conspired to create the crucible in which these issues have risen to the surface. Thank God for fellow pilgrims with which to explore, consider, and grow.
A fascinating theme that coursed through many of the conversations during the L2 conference I attended last weekend in Chicago was the generation gap between our parents (1st generation) and us (2nd). Many of us noted that while our parents are no less political than we, they were apt to be involved with homeland politics or with country-specific causes here in the US, whereas we were more apt to seek out pan-Asian issues. Our parents’ identity crises are related to their duality of citizenship, whether literally or not; our hyphenations are less about our countries of origin and more about being simultaneously Asian and American.
In our community development affinity group, we talked about the uneasiness or outright disapproval many of our parents communicated to us about our career choices. One participant mentioned that it was because of an immigrant’s natural desire, having worked hard to give his or children economic opportunities and financial security, to see the next generation garner lucrative and prestigious jobs. But I countered that while I might not end up earning as much as my dad did in his engineering career, I wasn’t making bad money; and my career path might end up garnering me more prestige and influence than him.
Rather, I offered, our parents’ generation definition of work was fundamentally different from ours. Work was a vehicle to provide for family, a means to a greater end. Technical careers, and therefore technical educations, were particularly sought after, because they allowed for a maximum of financial reward with a minimum of job risk. And in fact, for many in my generation, it is the same approach to work and career.
But for those justice-minded of my peers, work is a means to another, different end: for Christians, an opportunity to seek God’s kingdom and to right social wrongs. Again, such vocational trajectories may afford us greater honor than our parents, rather than less; we may end up as famous social change agents or respected community leaders or even powerful political officials. But our jobs will be less technical and more encompassing than those sought out by our parents and encouraged in their children, that of doctors and engineers and lawyers.
It was fascinating to explore these generational gaps with other like-minded peers. Faith, the immigration experience, and American values have all conspired to create the crucible in which these issues have risen to the surface. Thank God for fellow pilgrims with which to explore, consider, and grow.
Comments