Wondering about life in 2121 – a different birth announcement

Today Sun Lin Lang (孙林朗) joined our family. We have been awaiting his arrival with great anticipation for a while now. And I think he has been keen too, perhaps eager to explore new vistas – at least, he has been kicking vigorously for many weeks, signaling, we think, “I am ready!”. 

Holding a new life in my hands is truly awe-inspiring. I am filled with wonder. 

And it strikes me, as I stare into his eyes, how wonder has two very different meanings – and both apply here.

There is the meaning of amazement, of marvel, of admiration, as in wonderful. And I am certainly experiencing wave upon wave of this. My gratitude at this time is deep. Lin Lang is wonderful.

Wonder also has the meaning of being curious, of asking questions. And I wonder what life will be like for Lin Lang.  On my father’s side, we have a history of longevity, and with the advancement of medicine, it is not unlikely that Lin Lang will live to see the age of 100. What will life be like during that span – for him and for his cohort? The year 2121 seemed abstract to me yesterday. Now it has taken concrete form.

I am determined to do what I can to lay a foundation for him that can make for a life filled with joy and meaning. I will want to expose him to diverse people and situations. I will want to tickle his curiosity by asking different questions. I will want to meet him where he is at any time, while also signaling that there might be something more that is worth exploring, when the time is right and he is ready.

But, in humility, I acknowledge that my influence is limited. Societal factors that I do not control will have great impact on his life. Climate change is, unfortunately, likely to have devastating effects over the coming century. We are just too complacent, too slow to act. What will that mean for Lin Lang? What will he say, as he lives the destruction wrought by flooding, drought and displacement that follows from changing weather patterns?   I picture him musing: How curious – for thirty years after the evidence became clear most people did nothing, and very few people made a concerted effort to avert the cost and the pain that was bound to hit future generations. And he will ask: “What did you do, Dad?”

As bleak as the climate change consideration is, the evolving inner workings of human society are likely to be just as challenging. We are struggling to manage the seemingly inexorable forces of automation, economics and competition. Increasingly large groups of people feel left behind. They no longer sense that they have a real stake in society. Depending on the country they live in, they may or may not be supported financially by the state, but – regardless – they feel marginalized from the mainstream of society – often with atrophying skills or with skills that are becoming less relevant. The inequality is glaring, and rising. At this time, the complexity of this challenge just seems too much for us to handle. We focus on what we can influence – which is close to us in time and space, and we easily give up on influencing the bigger picture, where the effect of our actions is indirect, long-term and uncertain. 

Where will Lin Lang end up in an increasingly stratified society? I don’t know, of course. Given this ignorance, am I happy about the way society is evolving? The answer must be “no”. Sure, I can do my bit to ensure Lin Lang gets a quality education and is admitted to those parts of society that experience a clear sense of agency. But it is not just about Lin Lang, it is about his cohort, and about the cohorts to come. Will I, will we, find and muster the courage to grapple with the planetary-scale social issues we are facing?

I started out by sharing my overwhelming sense of wonder in the sense of amazement, of marvel, of admiration. And that is the stronger feeling. But Lin Lang’s birth is also a wake-up call to me, strengthening my awareness of the pressing issues we are facing as a species, making me wonder what life will be like for him, and making me re-examine what my role is in addressing our greatest challenges.

At this time, I have more questions than answers. I am OK to live with the questions for a while, but I do already have some emerging, tentative answers – or perhaps components of answers; seeds that may germinate and grow into fuller answers in due course.

There are technical answers. I can further reduce my own carbon footprint. I can increase the time and energy I devote to the think tanks I support, so that we nudge the direction that society is heading in – hopefully in a positive direction. 

But, more important than these, I sense, there are deeper answers. I can seek quiet spaces and step back more regularly, re-gaining perspective. I can collaborate with a more diverse group of people, thereby enriching my perspective. I can ask more fundamental questions, and encourage those around me to hold those questions in their minds. I can spend more time reflecting on the secondary and tertiary effects of current actions – effects that will be felt a hundred years from now. Through my work I can engage with colleagues, associates and clients to grapple with higher levels of complexity, and I can encourage and support those who embark on that challenging journey.

There is lots I can do. And the arrival of Lin Lang has given me new energy, new determination to stay the course and redouble my effort – not from an oppressive sense of heavy responsibility, but from a desire to make my contribution to giving Lin Lang and his cohort the external conditions that contribute to a good life. 

Join me?