Look, I’ll admit it: watching my eleven-year-old grandson navigate his tablet the other day left me feeling like I’d traveled to another planet.
There I was, trying to help him find a video about dinosaurs (his latest obsession), and before I could even type the first letter, he’d already swiped, tapped, and voice-searched his way to exactly what he wanted. Meanwhile, I’m still squinting at the screen, wondering where the search bar went.
Sound familiar? If you’re nodding along, congratulations—you might just be a card-carrying member of the boomer generation, trying to make sense of a world that seems to have shifted into hyperdrive while we were busy living our lives.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining. Having four grandchildren has been one of life’s greatest gifts. But somewhere between changing their diapers and watching them grow into these tech-savvy little humans, the generation gap became more like a generation canyon. And honestly? Sometimes it’s pretty hilarious.
So let’s dive into those moments when you realize you’re definitely, undeniably a boomer—at least in your grandkids’ eyes.
1) They never actually call you
Remember when a ringing phone meant someone wanted to talk? Well, forget that. My grandkids text, send voice messages, video chat, share memes, and communicate through methods I’m still discovering. But an actual phone call? That’s apparently reserved for absolute emergencies or when they need money.
The three-year-old literally knows how to FaceTime (with help, but still), yet the idea of picking up a phone to just chat seems as foreign to them as using a rotary dial would be. “Why would I call when I can just text?” my oldest grandchild asked me once, genuinely puzzled by the concept.
2) Their attention span makes goldfish look focused
Here’s something that truly baffles me: they can watch videos at double speed. Double speed! Last week, one of them was watching what looked like a cooking show, except the person was talking like a chipmunk on caffeine. “How can you even understand that?” I asked. The response? A shrug and “You get used to it.”
They flip between apps, videos, and conversations with the speed of light. During our walks, I listen to long-form podcast interviews where people actually finish their thoughts. Meanwhile, they’re consuming content in 15-second bursts. If something doesn’t grab them immediately, it’s gone. Next!
3) Privacy is apparently optional
This one really gets me. These kids will share everything online—what they ate for breakfast, their location, their thoughts on literally anything—but ask them to answer the door when a neighbor stops by? Suddenly they’re too shy.
I’ve watched them livestream themselves playing video games to strangers on the internet, narrating their every move. But making small talk with the cashier at the grocery store? That’s crossing a line. The boundaries of public and private have been completely redrawn, and I’m still trying to find the map.
4) They think email is ancient technology
“Why don’t you just DM them?” my grandson asked when I mentioned emailing a friend. DM? Direct message, apparently. On Instagram. Or Twitter. Or TikTok. Or any of the dozen platforms they juggle daily.
Email, to them, is what you use for “official” stuff—school assignments or when adults force them to. It’s formal, slow, and about as exciting as watching paint dry. Meanwhile, I’m over here still appreciating the miracle that is electronic mail.
Remember when we had to actually write letters and wait weeks for a response?
5) Money is just numbers on a screen
Cash? What’s that? These kids tap cards, scan phones, and transfer money through apps I’m still trying to understand. My youngest grandchild thought the coins in my pocket were “collectibles.”
They’ve never balanced a checkbook (what’s a checkbook?), never counted change, and the idea of going to a bank seems as outdated as using a typewriter. Everything is digital, instant, and somehow both more convenient and more confusing.
I tried explaining how we used to have to go to the bank before a trip to get travelers’ checks, and I might as well have been describing stone tablets.
6) Their humor is completely incomprehensible
They’ll show me a picture of a frog on a unicycle with text that says “mood” and then collapse in laughter. I smile and nod, but inside I’m thinking, “What does that even mean?”
The jokes aren’t jokes anymore—they’re references to references to references. It’s like they’re speaking in code, and the cipher changes daily. Something that’s hilarious today will be “cringe” tomorrow (yes, cringe is now an adjective). I’ve given up trying to keep up and just enjoy their laughter, even if I don’t understand the source.
7) Waiting is not in their vocabulary
“It’s buffering!” comes the complaint after roughly three seconds of loading time. These kids have never known the suspense of waiting for your favorite show to come on at a specific time on a specific day. Everything is on-demand, instant, now.
They can’t fathom having to wait until Saturday morning for cartoons or missing an episode and having to wait for summer reruns. The idea that we couldn’t pause live TV or that we had to watch commercials seems like ancient history. And don’t even get me started on trying to explain what it was like to wait for photos to be developed.
8) They multitask like tiny CEOs
Homework on the laptop, video playing on the tablet, texting on the phone, and somehow having a conversation with me, all simultaneously. When I was their age, doing homework meant sitting at a desk with a book and a pencil. Maybe the radio on if we were feeling rebellious.
They claim they focus better with all this stimulation. I’m skeptical, but then again, they seem to get everything done. It’s like watching a juggler who keeps adding more balls and never drops one. Exhausting to watch, impossible to understand.
Closing thoughts
You know what though? Despite all these foreign behaviors that make me feel like a relic from another era, there’s something beautiful about this generational divide. My grandkids are teaching me just as much as I’m teaching them, even if what they’re teaching me is that I’ll never fully understand TikTok.
They keep me young, or at least trying to stay relevant. And beneath all the technology and changing communication styles, some things remain constant: they still love stories about “the old days,” still need hugs when they’re sad, and still light up when I show genuine interest in their world, even when I don’t quite get it.
So here’s my question for you: what completely foreign behavior from the younger generation has left you scratching your head lately? Because if we’re going to be boomers in their eyes, we might as well embrace it—confusion, wonder, and all.
