Get Off My Lawn, Kids

I must be getting old. Like... seriously, I've officially reached the point where the way "kids today" go about existing on Planet Earth baffles me as badly as I'm sure my own lifestyle and value system baffled my parents or grandparents. 

I think the weirdest thing to me is the going attitude toward relationships today. It honestly seems as if everyone under the age of 50 considers an open relationship to be the way to go. Like it's some kind of punishment to be expected to actually be faithful to your mate. I've even heard people saying that they think it's abusive and selfish not to be OK with it if your partner wants to sleep with other people. 

Now... I've been the last thing from perfect in some of my past relationships. I've cheated on people before. I'm even relatively open about the fact that my relationship with Seth started while I was still married to Greg. However, I never actually saw that behavior as something that should be socially acceptable or that my exes should have freely allowed me to do. Ultimately, I wanted to be with someone that was not only 100% faithful to me, but that kept me happy enough for me to want to be the same. I fought for it and searched for it until I found it and it's amazing to know that I have another person that belongs to just me and that I belong to in return. I honestly feel bad for anyone that's willing to settle for anything short of that. That isn't a relationship at all as far as I'm concerned.

Then there's the way no one seems to think they need God anymore or that it's somehow "silly" to believe in anything bigger than yourself. If you actually enjoy church or are open about reading your Bible, people seem just horrified anymore. You don't have to be preaching at them, trying to convert them, or criticizing anything about their lifestyle. Just mentioning it is enough. And then there's the way that everything's suddenly about "free the nipple", and public breastfeeding regardless of who it offends, and all sorts of things along those lines. I'm no prude, but it honestly seems to me that human beings are really regressing. Pretty soon, we'll be no better than animals, socially speaking. We're letting go of everything that made us higher beings, if not actually throwing it in the dumpster with both hands. We're supposed to be better than that. 

I absolutely believe that everyone should be free to be themselves and to live the way they want to live so long as it's not hurting anyone else. But it's kind of getting out of hand. I seem to recall being the person that always thought outside the box. I don't know if I've mellowed with age or if it really is true that every generation is doomed not to understand the one that follows, but dang. I'm not used to being the most conservative thinker in any group so often. Maybe I need new friends. I think I've outgrown the old ones... or they've outgrown me. Same difference at the end of the day, I guess.