As millennials, we have the unsolicited task of complaining about the foundations of society foisted upon us by the powers that be. Fortunately, for every complaint about mortgage payments and minivans, there’s a bright side to look forward to, such as say, being able to afford a home and a car. So in celebration of those venerable institutions we so love to joke about, let’s look at the five most common tropes of adulthood.
Marriage
Here is the classic. For generations of people, marriage has been viewed as the “be all end all” of happily ever after or freedom definitively forsaken. Regardless of your opinion, the fact remains that 51% of American adults are married. While the Pew Research Center tells us that number is the lowest it’s ever been, more than half of America still tied the knot. So yearn for it or fear it as you will, it seems like marriage is here to stay.
Minivan
While most of us envision our futures filled with a high-end sports car, the unfortunate reality is that most of us will end up driving around in something decidedly less glamorous. While the 90s gave rise to a camouflaged breed of the “mom-mobile” in the form of the SUV, the minivan ethos has remained more or less intact. Filling a car with a hoard of children and their various accouterments is a necessary component of daily life for any parent and the minivan, as reviled as it may be, is the most convenient way to do that.
Mortgage
The formidable task of buying a home may seem insurmountably difficult to the average young person, but with our financial system’s assistance, the task can actually come within reach. Signing up for something so permanent might scare the more skittish of us but mortgage strategies do give you the chance to buy into your small slice of the American dream. That emerald lawn and white picket fence might seem dated, but deep down, we can all admit it’s more than a little appealing. Mortgage aside, that dream house is calling your name.
Maternity
As dictated by our Declaration of Independence, we’re all trained from birth with the siren song of “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” While there isn’t a standard definition for what that happiness may be, for many, it’s parenthood. Echoing the perennial chorus of cries that parenthood is the most meaningful thing in one’s life, generation after generation continue to do it. We can all agree that raising children is justifiably terrifying, but if all the parents before us are to be believed, it’s well worth the effort.
Mid-Level Management
To the crowds of newly minted graduates issuing forth into the working world, finding gainful employment seems stressful enough, not to mention holding onto that job once you find it. But when the time of your life rolls around that you can sit back in your office chair and take a moment to reflect on your career, resting on your laurels must feel pretty good. Paving your way through the corporate ladder might not be the easiest task in the world but in our grand tradition of upward mobility, it just might be a ladder worth climbing.