Melina: That's So Boring, Grandpa

Ma and I enjoy collecting examples of narcissistic Baby Boomer writing. There is certainly a lot of it out there. The pieces tend to run along the lines of "The Baby Boomers were so unique, and heroic, in the 60s" or "Whatever will the Baby Boomers do, now that they've turned [40, 50, 60...]?"

Part of my job is to scan the Jewish media for articles that may be relevant to what we do. And yesterday I came across this gem:

"Bubbie and Zaide were Hippies"

['Bubbie' and 'Zaide' are common Jewish nicknames for Grandma and Grandpa.']

Now, this is a very sweet article, but its overall thesis I find a bit unrealistic - that the grandchildren of hippies will enjoy listening to stories about how Grandma and Grandpa used to pass their days when they were flower children. I am merely one generation removed from The Hippies, and I already find these stories stultifyingly dull. Here's one excerpt from the above article, where the optimistic author envisions regaling her grandchildren:

Where is the Jewish children's book called "Bubbe and Zaide were Hippies"? The most meaningful experience of faith for today's bubbes and zaidies is unlikely to be being saved from physical attack; it is more likely to be the first time they prayed outside at sunrise following an all-night Shavuot [holiday] study session. How lovely the illustration of this could be: Zaide, 30 years younger, in his jeans and rainbow-colored tallit [prayer shawl], the sun rising in soft watercolors.

Sorry, but all this story says to me is that Zaide likes imagining himself 30 years younger. And I'm afraid that Zaide has been spending too much time admiring his rainbow-colored
tallit in the mirror if he thinks his grandchildren are going to have the slightest interest in this story.

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