I think there's been a big psychological shift in people my age

In the voice of the present age, yet echoing with the wisdom of countless generations, Asher Keddie proclaims: “I think there’s been a big psychological shift in people my age raising children. The world that they are growing into requires a different style of parenting.” These words, simple yet profound, remind us that parenting is not a stone carved once and for all time, but a river that bends to the shape of the land it flows through. Each age of humankind has demanded of its parents new visions, new skills, and new sacrifices, for the children of tomorrow cannot be raised solely with the tools of yesterday.

In ancient days, the parent’s duty was survival: to feed, to clothe, to guard the child against hunger, cold, and danger. Later, in settled civilizations, the parent’s role expanded: to teach trade, custom, and the laws of gods and men. But in the world of Keddie’s time — and indeed in ours — the challenges are no longer only of body, but of mind and spirit. The children who rise now step into a world of ceaseless noise, glowing screens, fractured truths, and unseen battles for their attention and hearts. Thus, the psychological shift of which she speaks is not luxury, but necessity.

Consider the story of Sparta and Athens, two mighty poles of the ancient Greek world. In Sparta, parents raised their children in the ways of war, for their world demanded strength and discipline above all. In Athens, children were raised with words and ideas, for their world demanded reason and debate. Each society shaped its style of parenting according to the destiny that awaited its youth. So too must today’s parents adapt, for the destiny of modern children is not to wield spear or orate in the forum, but to navigate a world both wondrous and perilous — a world of technology, global connection, and fragile truths.

The shift is not merely in methods but in the heart of parenting itself. Once, obedience was the highest virtue a child could show; now, resilience and adaptability may matter more. Once, knowledge was given by parents and elders; now, knowledge bursts forth from countless sources, some wise, many false. A parent today must not only feed the child but teach them how to discern, how to question, how to remain whole in a world of overwhelming currents. It is no longer enough to give them answers — one must give them the compass of critical thought and the anchor of inner strength.

And yet, let us not imagine this change to be easy. Many elders look upon the present ways and shake their heads, yearning for the “old methods.” But wisdom teaches us that clinging to past ways without adaptation is like building a ship for calm seas while sailing into a storm. Just as the farmer alters his tools when the climate shifts, so must the parent transform their ways when the world itself changes. This is not betrayal of tradition, but the honoring of it — for the true tradition of parenting has always been to equip the child for the world ahead, not the world already gone.

The lesson, then, is clear: embrace the psychological shift not with fear, but with courage. Parents must learn alongside their children, unashamed to say, “The world is new, and I too must grow.” They must foster resilience, not rigidness; curiosity, not blind obedience; compassion, not indifference. For the children of today will inherit storms we cannot yet see, and only with adaptable spirits will they endure.

Practical actions spring forth from this wisdom: speak openly with your children, rather than only dictating; teach them to question with humility, not with arrogance; guide them to use tools of the modern world with discipline, rather than denial. Above all, remind them always of their worth, for in a world filled with voices, the voice of a parent saying, “You are enough,” is still the mightiest shield against despair.

Thus, Keddie’s words must be carried forward as prophecy and guidance: the world is changing, and so must we. Let parents not fear the change, but rise to it with strength and tenderness alike. For to raise a child is to raise the future, and the future will always demand something new of us. Parenting, then, is not merely a duty, but an eternal act of transformation — for as the child grows into the world, so too must the parent grow into the age.