The Younger Generation; reluctant to abide traditional values?

Woke up pretty early today, around 6.35am.

Today was the actual day for Qing Ming which means "Clear and Bright Festival" in the Chinese language (as cited by Wikipedia), a day where people honoured and commemorated their ancestors often via expression of prayer and offerings.
And that meant that I had to head down to Mandai Columbarium along with my family, to pay respects and pray for my late Grandma.

We arrived late. Amidst all the ashes, smoke and the smell of joss sticks in addition with the lack of sleep, we finally found the rest of our family members. Greetings were brief as we were already running late and some of them had to rush to work after that; we moved quickly.

The place wasn't really a place you would want to be at early in the morning (nor at night) and since it was, as I've mentioned, the actual day of the festival, a considerable amount of people massed there, offering prayers to their ancestors.


However, I couldn't help but notice a certain degree of reluctance on many of the faces that were gathered there amongst the crowd.

This was especially evident on the younger people that were present there. Many of them had that "lets get it over and done with" look on their faces. There were even some of them that were playing with their gaming consoles while they held their joss sticks in the other hand and prayed.
I question their believe and their understanding of such a festival and the significance to them. Surely this isn't just another family outing but something more.

I confess that I'm one of those "younger people" there and I've had various doubts about the festival at one point as I wasn't really too keen on waking up early; I thought that it was just a big waste of time going there.
But over time, understanding and inquiry, I've realised that this festival not only bonds the living with the dead (in a way), but also the living with the living.
I've heard of long lost family members reconciling through their ancestral links and the festival also draws different people from different walks of life together.

It not a question of "time-wasting" but more rather, a question of morals and traditional values.

One may suggest that its things like filial piety and respect that galvanizes the devotion and faith that these people have towards their ancestors. In a sense yes. However, as I glance around, something peculiar struck me.

The older generation amongst the crowd have a much different look on their faces. Much more like the look of nostalgia and eagerness. I've seen old folks, in their 80s, slowly limping their way through the Columbarium, in search of their friends or families.
Never mind the smoke in the air nor the ashes all around them, they have only one goal while they're there- to "visit" someone that was once significant in their lives. I'm very sure that the significance is immense to them, much more compared to filial piety and respect.

I thus draw comparison from the two different groups of people. Are the younger generations really reluctant to abide traditional values?

One of the main reasons, I think, is that the younger generations don't know and haven't experience the significance and the true meaning of traditional values.
They think its a waste of time, and I, being a part of this "younger generation", understand how they feel.
However, I feel that as long as they are able to grasp and understand the importance and significance of the festival and the reason they're there, they too will realise that it isn't a chore but a question of moral reckoning, a question that only they themselves can answer.

That being said, I feel that parents and elders should inculcate these traditional values in the younger ones and explain the significance to them. Only then will they know about that little special something that will probably stick with them for a long time to come and hopefully, they too will pass this "knowledge" on.
In the fast paced society of the world today, such values are often forgotten as the big M(oney) word often overwrites everything.

I thus hope the people of today will not produce the "monsters" of tomorrow.


As for my Grandma, I'm pretty sure she's in a better place now. Disease might have defeated her in this world, but I'm really sure that she lives on in all of our hearts and memories.