I was born in 1994, which depending on who you ask, places me either at the very bottom of the Millennial Generation or the at very top of Generation Z. I remember a time when the latest technologies involved those little portable music players that only played like 30 seconds of a song, and that ever popular phrase, “You’ve got mail!” coming out of the 20-pound desktop computer that my parents let me use in our basement. But on the other hand, I’ve never really had to check out a book from the library for research purposes, as search engines have been very close by for most of my advanced school career.
So, although my name has mostly been attached to that of the millennial era, I’m not so sure I fully belong there. It feels like a weird gray area. But, then, I have a lot of practice in a similar sort of area, as I am a middle child!
Middle children of the world know what its like to live in this weird gray area. Not just for pop cultural references, but the history, technology, and life lessons that you learn are filtered in a way unlike your other siblings.
Example 1: Curfews
Oldest child will break the curfew, as oldest children like to do, and get grounded for a month. Then the middle child comes along, sees that the consequences do not outweigh the actions, and doesn’t break the curfew. Middle child doesn’t get in trouble but is forced into a behavior that may not accurately portray his or her personality. Then the youngest child, seeing that there were no consequences for the middle, breaks the curfew. But by then the parents have changed their minds and have either extended the curfew or abolished it entirely.
(Disclaimer: Although I know they exist, I don’t have time, nor do I care, about the repercussions of the behaviors displayed by the oldest and youngest children.)
Example 2: Student Debt
Millennials, due to a demanding economy, are persuaded to take out thousands of dollars of debt in their college education. They are rewarded with average degrees and an unforgiving job market. The space between Generations Y and Z (heretofore known as Gray Area) sees the debt that their slightly older pupils are in and realize that the consequences are not worth the actions, and the people of the gray area re-evaluate their life plans accordingly. This possibly leads them to an overly cautious path that slows them down to an unhealthy level. Generation Z is a little too soon to evaluate for this example of student debt. But early observations have seen them throw caution to the wind, and just hope that when they come out of it, the economy will have changed their minds.
So, what does this mean for these weird gray area-ers? What does it mean for the people that remember 9/11, but were too young fully comprehend the gravity of the situation? What does it mean for the people that can sing along with every single song on the only five CDs that they owned, but get annoyed when someone adds a song to their carefully selected playlist that doesn’t match?
Where is our place in the world? I mean I know that sounds like a very general question that everyone should ask. But for these people in the gray area, we’ve been looking for a label for a long time.
What TV show defines us?
I mean, personally, I was present for the finales of Sabrina the Teenaged Witch and Boy Meets World, as well as the premiers of The Suite Life of Zack and Cody and iCarly. I loved them all almost equally (except Boy Meets World, that show will always reign supreme!), and I connected with them all in different ways.
But, maybe I’m thinking about this too pessimistically. I mean I got to experience being a kid during a time when technology was really taking off! I get to be an adult in an unforgiving job market, fully unprepared, but fully aware that I’m not the only one.
And I think that my comparison to middle children still holds true when I tell you what my middle children’s group in my freshmen year’s Sociology class described as the best and worst things about being a middle child.
The WORST thing about being in the Gray Area: Nobody cares about you.
The BEST thing about being in the Gray Area: Nobody cares about you.
We, the people of the Gray Area, are going to change the world. And nobody’s going to see it coming!
Inside the mind of an introvert 