I used to be offended because I felt seemingly overlooked by the whole network of a marketing industry. As a child, I watched my older Gen-X siblings with their mohawks, acid wash jeans, and their "Me" generation. While they listened to Tiffany, Debbie Gibson, watched and related to Molly Ringwald films, I played with Strawberry Shortcake, Cabbage Patch Dolls, My Little Ponies (the originals), watched and related to Punky Brewster. As I grew older, I played Oregon Trail to their Pac-Man. While they carried a large boombox or walk-man, I donned the portable cd player. There were overlaps between my growing up years and theirs, just as there are with the one that would follow the Millennials.
As I came of age in the 90's, entering college, the workforce, I felt over-looked again, this time with a new marketing direction, the 'Millennials'. I was left without a generation to cling to, the Gen-Xers didn't claim me and cast me to the Millennials, who laughed me right back to the Gen-Xers. Or, so they both thought, however, neither did I feel quite at home yet seemingly I still find commonality within both.
Then, it irked me as much as it pleased me when my generation was given the term, "Xennial". Yes, we are born in a shorter time span than the previous and the following, but does that signify we should be labeled as a mixture of both, as if we aren't special enough to have our own title? Indeed, haven't we suffered enough being overlooked during our coming of age influential years to finally be handed as if an afterthought a combo-label? With as much gratitude of finally having my generation, my growing up years, a recognition, I balked at the "Xennial" and proudly referred to myself as "the Oregon Trail Generation". And, still do. The Oregon Trail game was bad-ass and I will never refute that, come at me, if you do. However, the "Oregon Trail Gen" doesn't roll off the tongue with as much ease as does Gen-X, Millennial, or now Gen-Z.
But, then something changed in my regard towards the label, "Xennial". Upon reflecting on the overall history of my life, I realized I have always had the unique position of being in-between which was backed up by a friend in college admiringly calling me a 'bridge'. In my small town high school, I was in one of the largest classes ever, yet I wasn't actually supposed to be. Having been held back a year in preschool (for not being emotionally and developmentally ready, mind you, I could color just fine), I was always a year older than the rest of my classmates. Yet, as we grew up together, I never really felt as if it was anything but my class and now today I proudly claim them as a 'forever family', the "G-Town 97 Fam, baby!" However, there was a time, during our middle school and high school years, when a certain element of my class was found a grievance and annoyance among the other classes. In the afternoon electives, I would sit in classes with students from grades above or below me, listening to their ongoing rants about the clicky over-dominance of some of my classmates. Then, they would glance at me, with a slight apologetic smile, "I hate your class, not you, but you know what I mean." I would nod in understanding. Later, in my twenties, I traveled to Europe where I met friends from Italy, France, Switzerland, who would complain on the annoyances of the USA, from the government using their countries as a launching pad for their wars to the 'stupid American' tourists who over-took their streets. Then, they would look at me, with a slight apologetic smile, "I hate your country, not you, but you know what I mean." I would nod in understanding.
On and on throughout my life, I continued to find myself in such a place, growing increasingly in the role of a bridge, a mediator, an 'in-between'. With all this combined experience and personal relationship research, I come to an understanding of the label 'Xennial' with new found affection. As such, I am an advocate to assist the Gen-Xers, even the Boomers, in understanding the younger, as such I aid in offering guidance to the Millennials, even Gen-Z, to connect with the elder. Being an "Xennial", an in-between, naturally affords me the role I was seemingly fated, the 'mediator', bridging the gap, alleviating the argumental mis-understandings of the generations surrounding me, yet still uniquely feeling at home with myself and with those others of my generation.
I am an Oregon Trail Generation. I am an Xennial. And proud.
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