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Maya A., Low Entropy Volunteer Writer

As a young girl playing in the fields of my native Punjab, I always dreamt of moving out. I would see tall, shiny New York buildings in magazines and on television and always wished to grow up fast and move there. There was no financial or materialistic wish behind these pipe dreams, but rather a wish to break away from what I used to consider “old ways” of life.

Women in my village dressed modestly and were industrious and dedicated wives. I did not want to grow up to be someone’s devoted wife. I had big dreams for myself. I would think of ways to break free of this life. I wanted to become a “city girl.”

All of this was not just my far-fetched dreams, but also part of social conditioning and mainstream media, where the “city girl” was a desirable aesthetic. While cleaning my room yesterday, I found my journal from years ago. The writing was as comical as delusional. The entry vividly explained how older me would have a palatial house one day.

At that moment, I wondered: if I had a house like that today, would I still want it for myself or want to donate it to fundraise for the cause of Palestinian kids? Could I even afford a house today?

After high school in a strict catholic school in the city, the time came for me to move to the city for college. I moved out, and with the help of my dad, I rented a small apartment. Life was lonely. I was in a pre-med school, and life was nothing like what I had imagined it to be. I thought I ‘d make friends and live every bit of life. But turned out it was the complete opposite.

During my teens, I always hoped and believed that my 20s would be the “it” years of life. At 27 today, my 20s have flown by in the blink of an eye. They are nothing like what I imagined them to be. I thought I would have had a high-powered career by now, bought a place for my parents and been in a loving marriage with my high school sweetheart. None of which have occurred.

Being a full-time student while working and living independently was never in the cards. I was sure I would complete all my major goals by 26 or 27. I don’t dare to dream of buying a house now. Much of  Gen Z is in the same boat as me. In an economy like the one we are in right now, every day feels like a challenge. Inflation has driven up the cost of living through the roof. Young people like me find it so hard to pay bills and save up something for the future. Frankly speaking, saving for the future is out of the question.

The pandemic hit us in the face in 2020. Millions of people lost their lives, businesses were affected, people had to isolate themselves. We lost almost two years in the process. Now we’re left with gloomy prospects for the future, images of kids and women hit by bombs in Palestine in the media, capitalist cronies sucking the life out of common people, and on top of that, social media. We’re updated with what’s happening out there every second. 

Today’s world is incredibly uncertain, and moreso with the added mix of social media. When a 20- year-old scrolls on Instagram and sees influencers claiming to make a six-figure income and living a flashy lifestyle, it makes you question what you are doing in life, and I am guilty of doing that.

It feels like today’s younger generation is under a lot of pressure. Along with all the major wars occurring, political crises and climate change, the world is not a happy place. Not to say it ever was or will be, but it certainly feels almost uninhabitable now.

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