If you are a long time reader of these pages or someone who knows me personally then you know of my love for reality TV. Not all reality TV mind you but some. One of the shows I watch, dare I say religiously, is the Granddaddy of all reality TV shows Survivor. I have watched every season and almost all of the episodes of those seasons. I like the game and the premise of the game. Take 16 people and drop them on an island with only the clothes on their back and test and challenge them to see who can outwit, outlast, and outplay the others. The conditions are harsh at times and there is an obvious lack of food. This is not an easy game to take part in.
Last night whilst watching the most recent episode I was completely shocked when two of the contestants quit the game with 11 days to go. I understand that the conditions are harsh, it rained almost everyday, and it was cold, and they did not have much food, but to quit is something that is beyond me. I comment on this because I fear it is something that is becoming all too familiar with the younger generation, when the going gets tough quit. The two women who were quitters last night were in their 20’s and were 2 of some thousands of people who tried out for the show.
The bigger surprise in all of this was the actions of one of the women. In each episode there are two challenges, one is a reward challenge where the winner or the winning teams gains some reward, and the other is for immunity from the vote that night. One of the quitters was on the winning team and was set to go off and watch a movie and eat some long desired for food. She had already made it know to her team mates and the host of the show, and those of us watching at home, that she was going to quit that night. The host of the show gave an extra reward of a tarp and food to the entire team if one of the winners would forgo the reward in order to take the items for the whole team. In my mind it would have been logical for the quitter to take the items back to camp and not go on reward, but there she sat in all her selfish glory, and did not move. So another woman, a non quitter we will call her, stepped up to the plate and took one for the team. Selfishness is another thing I feel the younger generation has been infected with.
Now I know this is a TV show and game, I do however believe that it is not scripted, so it is a pretty good indication of how she thinks and feels about others. The larger problem is she is a school teacher, a shaper of young minds, and the only thing she taught them was to quit. Just as an aside, this same person stole food from her fellow contestants and then never apologized for taking the food. She is a disgrace!
I have been through some difficult times in my life, not as difficult as Survivor but difficult none the less. All of us have been through difficult times and many of us did not quit. We kept to the word we gave and we completed the task regardless of how hard it was. Again I feel quitting and self centeredness is a sickness that has infected the younger generation and one that needs to be eradicated.
the problem with quiting is you never know how much more you could have been.
When I was half way through nursing school I had seriouse thoughts of quitting,finally my husband said "you've come this far,if its not meant to be let them throw you out but don't quit."
Those words mean more to me now then they did then but you know what he was right.