I’ve been blogging on Volf’s End of Memory book. In chapter 3 he states that this generation is obsessed with memorializing events. Hardly had the smoke cleared from NYC before people began debating how to erect a memorial “when we could not possibly have had enough time to absorb the impact of the disaster and reflect on its meaning!” (40). Volf thinks there are two principle causes:
(1) Our fast paced culture makes us quick to forget and look forward to the next glitzy thing. So we have to memorialize experiences to avoid forgetting altogether;
(2) After WWII, we have developed a sense that we must remember “major wrongs suffered” or cause the victims to be re-victimized all over again. “To forget would be tantamount to taking their lives for a second time” (40).
His comments struck a cord for me but in a different area. I’m all for remembering and memorializing things–both the good and the bad. But it seems to me that we are obsessed with memorializing and celebrating. Every kid in school gets a birthday party on their birthday. Every Friday they get a special treat. Every teacher needs a present, every kid needs a white elephant Christmas party, every birthday party at home is bigger than the last. I’ve read with some sweet 16 parties top 100,000 dollars. Our kids come to expect that they will get a goody bag of presents when they go to someone else’s birthday party. It seems that so many parties happen that they decrease the sense of real celebration.
There, I’m done. The rant is over…
Musings on Faith and Psychology 
I agree with what you’ve said here, Phil. And it’s SO difficult to try to buck the culture on this. Any ideas on how? Getting the kids on board, for example..
Not many ideas. I’m looking to build consistent experiences for my boys (like dinnertime together) that they may find memorable in the long run but not so in the short run. I expect to continue to get their complaints, “How come we don’t do xxxx like the Smith’s do?”. While there’s no answer that will really satisfy them now, I’m hoping they’ll see the wisdom when they enter adulthood. In the short term, I’m just a scrooge.