Voice of Democracy - Fellowship Christian Academy: Jillian! - Granite Grok

Voice of Democracy – Fellowship Christian Academy: Jillian!

Does my generation play a role in America’s future?

Just like I said – an entire class!

  (Picture credit: Alan Glassman; FCA students) 
 
Previous papers were from  Peter, Maggie, Laura, Kathryn, Grace & Tim, Catherine, Ben, & Tyler.

“It is incumbent on every generation to pay its own debts as it goes." A principle which if acted on would save one-half the wars of the world.” This is a quote by our great former president, and one of America’s founding fathers, Thomas Jefferson. I believe that with each passing generation, this quote has been more and more demolished. If you look back to the time of Thomas Jefferson and the rest of our founding fathers, I don’t know of anyone that wouldn’t agree with one statement: our world is a different place now then it was then. Too many generations have passed where no one has acted upon their responsibility as an American citizen and a part of the future of America. Every generation has or had a role in the future of our great country. How they handled that is a completely different story. Our country is not a place that reflects the words of our Declaration of Independence anymore. This greatly known document reads, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” I ask one thing – when is the last time that we paid any attention to these true and powerful words of one of the most famous documents in America’s history? It is time we realize that we have strayed far from the principals that the founding fathers tried to establish our country upon. It is time we humble ourselves before our creator and acknowledge that we have greatly forgotten His plan for our country. It is time to take on the responsibility that many generations have seemed to overlook. Our generation needs to play a role in establishing a better future for America.
               
When was the last time you met a teenager or young adult that would honestly be able to tell you that they don’t go…


…on their computer or their cell phone every single day? My guess is you haven’t. This is a serious problem with our generation. Now, I’m not trying to say that cell phones or computers are a bad thing because I, myself, own both. However, it is the love of, and the obsession with them that is a stumbling block for us. Recent statistics show that 85% of children and young adults have a cell phone and use it to text or talk excessively each day. This is also true of video games. 42% of children and young adults play video games on a daily basis. It is necessary that we take a step back and look at what we’re doing with our lives and our time. If we would stop playing video games and texting so much, we could make more time for things like focusing on the future of America. Yes, that sounds cheesy, but it’s so true. Those words are so much deeper than many who hear them think them to be. When the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States of America were written knew how to make time for the important things in life. Unfortunately, the important things in life for our generation are really not the important things at all. I wish that more people would see where our country is headed. We do not look at each other as equals anymore. Life is a competition of who can do better, or who can have the nicer things, or who can get farther in life instead of partnering with people to make a difference in the world and create a better future – even though that person might not have a nice house or clothes like you. John F. Kennedy once said, “We have the power to make this the best generation of mankind in the history of the world, or to make it the last.” These words are true of every single generation that ever was or ever will be. The question is; which one will step up to the task of actually making it the best generation? My hope and my prayer is that that generation will be mine. My hope and my prayer is that we will hang up our cell phones and turn off our televisions. My hope and my prayer is that we will become active in our countries future and get back to the foundation of the country where my neighbor is not in a lesser position than I am because I have a nicer car, but that he is my equal because that’s the way our creator made it to be and that’s the way our country was established.
               
I have known too many people my age that just don’t want to do anything for our country. Too many people have the lazy and ignorant attitude of, “I don’t have to serve my country because someone else will always do it.” However, if everyone has this attitude, who will be left to serve? The answer is no one. So, thank you, to everyone who has ever or will ever go into the military and defend our country. It is because of people like you that we still have a free country today. And, on that note, I am sorry for what our country is becoming. It is nothing more than a slap in the face to all of our brave men and women out there giving their lives, when another teenager or adult even, decides to just be another statistic of people that will not make a difference. Our generation has become too accustomed to the way of life that we have developed. We are selfless and lazy and we need to make a difference. We need to start caring less about ourselves and more about others. We need to adopt the principals and mindset of our founding fathers. I am here today to tell you that I am sick of statistics and sick of people who don’t care about being just another number. I will not be a statistic. I WILL do something about the future of our country and I WILL take on the responsibility that is endowed to me by my creator and our founding fathers. I will not forget that all men have been created equal and that we truly do have the power to decide whether this will be the best generation in mankind or not. I am ready to work to make this that generation that does away with the statistics. So, yes, my generation does have a role in the future of America. To those of you who are a part of my generation, I say: let’s make a change and bring honor to the names of the men that had the courage and the confidence in our country and truly believed that it could be the best one out there. Let’s not let them down. Let’s turn this country around. Let’s do our part to play a role in America’s future

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