My Grandfather: George B Young
Then |
Now |
BELOW IS AN INTERVIEW between my Grandfather and I held on December 3, 2013. My Grandfather, George B Young, is the son of Emma Elizabeth Morgan and Brigham Rigby Young. My Grandfather is a very great and wise man with many insights about life. Over the years, my Grandfather has developed a perspective of America, its progression, the changes that have taken place, and the future he believes it will have. This interview shows his perspective and it opened my eyes for what I may need to prepare for in my future. ENJOY!
When and where were you born and what was happening in America during those times?
I was born on December 14th, 1943 in the small town of Driggs in Southeastern Idaho. At that time World War II was raging all over the world!
Do you feel like America was at a good spot during that time?
Well, no. There were millions of our young men that had been sent off to the Pacific to fight the Japanese and off to Europe to fight the Germans and all of the economy was a war-based economy. We were trying to produce weapons and equipment so that we could arm our soldiers. People at home were deprived of many goods and services that we just take for granted today.
How did the war affect you and your family?
Well, I was one of the youngest of the seven children in the family. My father was considered too old to go and fight. And besides that, he was a farmer and farmers were producing food for the war effort so they were exempt from fighting, but things were very difficult for my parents. They were poor and it was a hard time, though they had plenty of food because they raised their own food.
How has America changed since you were a child? Would you say things are better or worse?
I would say, in many respects, it has improved tremendously! The advances in technology that have taken place, the medical advances, economic developments, have all made things much easier and better for the people in America than they were when I was a child and growing up. But you ask if things are better? In many respects, I think things are more difficult because of the attitudes that people have today and because of the circumstances and situations that keep people divided and separated in their ways of thinking. So, the answer to that question is both yes and no. But things are very, very different than they were when I was growing up.
Do you feel like technology has played a part in the developing attitudes of Americans?
I think it plays a huge part! Let me give you an example: When I was a child, our family gathered every night for dinner and we would sit around the table, have our meal, and visit together about the things that had happened for all of us during the course of the day. We would make plans and solve problems, and that is what would happen in our homes every night. On Thanksgiving day of this year, Grandma and I were in a restaurant having dinner with our son, Adam, and sitting at the table next to us was a family of a mother and a father and two teenage daughters. The mother and father both had cell phones in their hands and the teenage daughters had a cell phone between them. They were huddled together texting or receiving messages or whatever they were doing with their phones, maybe playing games, I don't know. Both parents held devices and operated them all through the meal. There was scarcely a word spoken between those parents and those children at that dinner table all throughout that meal. If you compare that experience with what I experienced at the dinner table as a child, you will see that technology really has affected families in America.
What is your definition of the American Dream and do you feel like that has changed throughout your life?
Well, I think that for me, the American Dream was largely economic. We believed, when we were growing up, that if we would stay in school and get an education then we would be assured a good job. That we would be able to improve our standard of living over that of our parents. And so our parents instilled within us, an absolute determination to get as much education as we could. Nowadays, many young people get an education and they still can't find a job even after getting bachelors and masters degrees from good universities. There is no guarantee that they are going to be able to work in the field that they trained and studied for. We had a pretty good understanding that if we did well in school, in a field that we liked, then we would be able to work in that field and be successful. So, I think the American Dream has changed. I don't know that there are the same guarantees for success for young people today that there were for me when I was a young adult.
Why do you think that is?
For one reason, we are now living in a world economy. When I was a young person, we had a single, national economy and even regional economy. Nowadays, young people are competing for jobs with people all over the world. Technology has made it possible for young people in India to take jobs in call centers that used to belong to American young people. So, there is much more competition for jobs than there was when I was a young person.
Do you personally feel like you have achieved and fulfilled your American Dream?
Yes, I am feeling very fulfilled with my life and the opportunities that I have had. I've had challenges. I've had to make decisions that were difficult, things that made things temporarily uncomfortable for myself and my family. But those hard decisions were made so that, ultimately, we could have the things that were important to us, and that has worked out for us. America has been faithful to me and has fulfilled it's promise and it's dream for me. I feel very blessed and very fortunate and I wish I was as convinced that it would provide the same for my grandchildren and my children as it did for me.
Do you feel like, with the changes that have happened in America, that your children and your grandchildren will have the same opportunities to fulfill the American Dream?
Yes, I think that they will, but I think they will have to be more directed than I was. I think they will have to be more cautious, more versatile and have to plan on changes and adapting to changes. I was fairly comfortable being in one or two places and living my professional life in those one or two places. As you and your generation will probably have to plan on seven, or eight, or nine, or ten changes in your life in order to accomplish your own objectives and dreams.
Do you think that there will be as much change in mine and your other grandchildren's lives as there was during your lifetime? How much change do you think will happen?
Oh, I think we are going to see tremendous change! Much, much more than I have seen in my lifetime. I think that the ecology of the Earth is going to have a profound impact on you. I think that the population will make a profound difference. I think that we are going to have to be more cautious about consuming the Earth's resources and not be so greedy to take more of the Earth's resources than we need.
To sum everything up, is there anything else you would like to say about America or the things that have shaped you into who you have become today? Any advice to future generations?
The thing I would like to say is that the one thing that has been most important to me throughout my life, from the time I was a child until now, is my connectedness with my family. I think that the same thing is going to be true for YOU. If your generation is to find happiness and fulfillment in their lifetime, it has to be in the context of family solidarity and family connectedness. If families disintegrate, and people go their own ways, individually, without a man and a wife in a home with children, then I don't believe there is any way your generation can achieve the same level of happiness and success that my generation had.
I was born on December 14th, 1943 in the small town of Driggs in Southeastern Idaho. At that time World War II was raging all over the world!
Do you feel like America was at a good spot during that time?
Well, no. There were millions of our young men that had been sent off to the Pacific to fight the Japanese and off to Europe to fight the Germans and all of the economy was a war-based economy. We were trying to produce weapons and equipment so that we could arm our soldiers. People at home were deprived of many goods and services that we just take for granted today.
How did the war affect you and your family?
Well, I was one of the youngest of the seven children in the family. My father was considered too old to go and fight. And besides that, he was a farmer and farmers were producing food for the war effort so they were exempt from fighting, but things were very difficult for my parents. They were poor and it was a hard time, though they had plenty of food because they raised their own food.
How has America changed since you were a child? Would you say things are better or worse?
I would say, in many respects, it has improved tremendously! The advances in technology that have taken place, the medical advances, economic developments, have all made things much easier and better for the people in America than they were when I was a child and growing up. But you ask if things are better? In many respects, I think things are more difficult because of the attitudes that people have today and because of the circumstances and situations that keep people divided and separated in their ways of thinking. So, the answer to that question is both yes and no. But things are very, very different than they were when I was growing up.
Do you feel like technology has played a part in the developing attitudes of Americans?
I think it plays a huge part! Let me give you an example: When I was a child, our family gathered every night for dinner and we would sit around the table, have our meal, and visit together about the things that had happened for all of us during the course of the day. We would make plans and solve problems, and that is what would happen in our homes every night. On Thanksgiving day of this year, Grandma and I were in a restaurant having dinner with our son, Adam, and sitting at the table next to us was a family of a mother and a father and two teenage daughters. The mother and father both had cell phones in their hands and the teenage daughters had a cell phone between them. They were huddled together texting or receiving messages or whatever they were doing with their phones, maybe playing games, I don't know. Both parents held devices and operated them all through the meal. There was scarcely a word spoken between those parents and those children at that dinner table all throughout that meal. If you compare that experience with what I experienced at the dinner table as a child, you will see that technology really has affected families in America.
What is your definition of the American Dream and do you feel like that has changed throughout your life?
Well, I think that for me, the American Dream was largely economic. We believed, when we were growing up, that if we would stay in school and get an education then we would be assured a good job. That we would be able to improve our standard of living over that of our parents. And so our parents instilled within us, an absolute determination to get as much education as we could. Nowadays, many young people get an education and they still can't find a job even after getting bachelors and masters degrees from good universities. There is no guarantee that they are going to be able to work in the field that they trained and studied for. We had a pretty good understanding that if we did well in school, in a field that we liked, then we would be able to work in that field and be successful. So, I think the American Dream has changed. I don't know that there are the same guarantees for success for young people today that there were for me when I was a young adult.
Why do you think that is?
For one reason, we are now living in a world economy. When I was a young person, we had a single, national economy and even regional economy. Nowadays, young people are competing for jobs with people all over the world. Technology has made it possible for young people in India to take jobs in call centers that used to belong to American young people. So, there is much more competition for jobs than there was when I was a young person.
Do you personally feel like you have achieved and fulfilled your American Dream?
Yes, I am feeling very fulfilled with my life and the opportunities that I have had. I've had challenges. I've had to make decisions that were difficult, things that made things temporarily uncomfortable for myself and my family. But those hard decisions were made so that, ultimately, we could have the things that were important to us, and that has worked out for us. America has been faithful to me and has fulfilled it's promise and it's dream for me. I feel very blessed and very fortunate and I wish I was as convinced that it would provide the same for my grandchildren and my children as it did for me.
Do you feel like, with the changes that have happened in America, that your children and your grandchildren will have the same opportunities to fulfill the American Dream?
Yes, I think that they will, but I think they will have to be more directed than I was. I think they will have to be more cautious, more versatile and have to plan on changes and adapting to changes. I was fairly comfortable being in one or two places and living my professional life in those one or two places. As you and your generation will probably have to plan on seven, or eight, or nine, or ten changes in your life in order to accomplish your own objectives and dreams.
Do you think that there will be as much change in mine and your other grandchildren's lives as there was during your lifetime? How much change do you think will happen?
Oh, I think we are going to see tremendous change! Much, much more than I have seen in my lifetime. I think that the ecology of the Earth is going to have a profound impact on you. I think that the population will make a profound difference. I think that we are going to have to be more cautious about consuming the Earth's resources and not be so greedy to take more of the Earth's resources than we need.
To sum everything up, is there anything else you would like to say about America or the things that have shaped you into who you have become today? Any advice to future generations?
The thing I would like to say is that the one thing that has been most important to me throughout my life, from the time I was a child until now, is my connectedness with my family. I think that the same thing is going to be true for YOU. If your generation is to find happiness and fulfillment in their lifetime, it has to be in the context of family solidarity and family connectedness. If families disintegrate, and people go their own ways, individually, without a man and a wife in a home with children, then I don't believe there is any way your generation can achieve the same level of happiness and success that my generation had.
Wow!! What a great man my Grandpa Young is! While listening to him during this interview, I gained a better understanding of America, what it has been like in the past, what it has become, and what it will be like in the future. I also gained a new perspective on how hard I may have to work now, in these modern days, to succeed in life. Laziness and idleness will never bring success in these quickly changing times. I also learned the importance of continuing to stick to my values and morals despite how the world's morals may change. I learned that striving to create and have a strong family will also be important to me as I try to live my own American Dream. I was so grateful for this opportunity to interview my Grandpa and learn so much from him and his experiences. I am truly blessed to have such amazing grandparents and other ancestors that have left their great legacies behind them for me to carry on.