Much has been made of the contrast between Gen X and Gen Z/Gen Alpha childhoods, but some differences feel more significant than others.

Obviously, Gen X didn’t have smartphones, social media, or even the Internet during our formative years. We roamed and explored our towns with little to no adult supervision. We came home when the streetlights went on or when our parents came to find us after the television PSA that said, “Parents, it’s 10 p.m. Do you know where your kids are?“

Some realities of Gen X childhood sound made up to younger generations, but some even sound bonkers to our own adult ears. Topping that list is how old so many of us were when we started babysitting. Some of us have had to check in with one another to make sure our memories are correct. Was I really putting someone else’s babies to bed at age 11?

Yes, I was. And so were countless other preteens.

@s.leigh.100 What were parents thinking!?! 🤣 #genx #funny #fyp #genxcrew #foryoupage ♬ Good Times Go By Too Fast – Dylan Scott

What were parents thinking!?! 🤣 #genx #funny #fyp #genxcrew #foryoupage ♬ Good Times Go By Too Fast – Dylan Scott

Gen Xers regularly started babysitting as young as age 8

“I need you to back me up,” wrote a Gen Xer on TikTok. “Did we not babysit entire families as children? I was 11 with zero training and full responsibility for 3 kids and an infant…paid $5 and a party pizza…My kids don’t believe me. My parents don’t recall.”

Other Gen Xers do recall, and we’re a bit baffled by it. It didn’t seem all that odd to us at the time. But looking back, especially as parents ourselves, who let us do that? Check out these examples from TikTok, which are in no way out of the ordinary:

“The day after my 10th birthday the neighbors down the street were excited I was finally old enough to babysit their kids. Their kids were 3 and 5. Apparently your age hitting double digits was all the qualifications needed.”

“Yup! 11 and babysat a newborn! Like what!? 🤣 Why did they let and why did my parents let me?”

“I was 10 watching 4 kids and I had to make dinner. 😂”

Anyone else babysit a literal baby before they were a teen? byu/splorp_evilbastard inGenX

“Yes! I was about 12 and babysat 3 kids – one was an infant and I had zero training. I was paid $2-3 an hour.”

“Yep I had a neighbor kid I took care of starting at 8. She was 2.”

“I was 11 watching a 2 and 3 year old. Made meals, changed diapers, gave baths. Zero training or babysitting classes taken.”

“I was 8 and babysitting 2 nephews from one brother and 3 from another… all under the age of 5.”

“I was 9 and holding it down with a 4, 2, and newborn. The ‘80s were wild!!!!”

“I started babysitting my 3 year old and 6 month old brothers when I was 8. My mom went back to school and I was in charge on weekends and all summer.”

@rochelle.digital Well, I mean my generation basically watched ourselves all the time so babysitting was no big deal! Can you imagine a 10 year old watch your baby alone these days? Maybe for a very short period of time if they were siblings. Other than that heck no! #nostalgiatok #80skid #80skids #generationx ♬ Major Tom (Coming Home) – Peter Schilling

Well, I mean my generation basically watched ourselves all the time so babysitting was no big deal! Can you imagine a 10 year old watch your baby alone these days? Maybe for a very short period of time if they were siblings. Other than that heck no! #nostalgiatok #80skid #80skids #generationx ♬ Major Tom (Coming Home) – Peter Schilling

Gen X has spent most of its lives in caretaking roles

Being full-on babysitters at age eight is genuinely wild, considering how most kids that age today have their own babysitters. Even knowing how different our childhoods were from the digital-native generations, having an eight- or nine-year-old caring for babies and toddlers feels like questionable decision-making on the part of all adults involved.

As a Gen Xer, I was babysitting other people’s kids by age 11. Even though I was quite mature for my age, that seems awfully young to me now. I’m sure preteens babysitting still happens, but it’s definitely not the norm.

And that’s probably a good thing. On one hand, there’s nothing wrong with kids learning responsibility at a young age. On the other hand, if you’re a Gen Xer who started babysitting at age eight and is a parent now, you’ve likely spent nearly all of your life in a caretaking role. And you’re likely continuing in that role both with your young adult kids and your aging parents.

@genx_reference_desk Replying to @123Tmb321 #genx #genxtiktokers #genxcrew #80s #80sbaby #80skid #80skids #fyp #foryoupage #xyzbca ♬ original sound – Genx Reference Desk

Replying to @123Tmb321 #genx #genxtiktokers #genxcrew #80s #80sbaby #80skid #80skids #fyp #foryoupage #xyzbca ♬ original sound – Genx Reference Desk

Was Gen X childhood or Gen Z childhood healthier?

There are a lot of questions we can raise in hindsight. Even if we were capable of babysitting kids not much younger than ourselves, were we any good at it? Was it healthy for us or for those kids? Did the expectations placed on us help us learn responsibility? Or did some of us have adult responsibilities placed on us too early?

We can ask the flip side of the same questions about younger generations. Have we expected too little of them? Has protecting their childhoods prevented them from learning responsibility? Is it healthy for kids to be constantly supervised? Did Gen X grow up and swing the pendulum too far the other way in raising Gen Z?

Can we really even answer those questions? Gen X has been called the least parented generation, which has certainly led to some conflicting perspectives. Our childhoods are often touted as being “carefree” when viewed through rose-colored glasses. But for many Gen Xers, especially women, the reality was more like “underparented while being expected to take on parenting responsibilities.”

@parkrosepermaculture Replying to @Rebecca Schuman #genx #parentification #babysitting #childcare #millennails #boomerparents ♬ original sound – Parkrose Permaculture

Replying to @Rebecca Schuman #genx #parentification #babysitting #childcare #millennails #boomerparents ♬ original sound – Parkrose Permaculture

In many ways, Gen X childhood was pretty great, but the premature babysitting thing was “legit sus,” as our kids would say. What were the adults thinking? Is it too late to ask?

While a bottle of bubbles might seem out of place in a hospital setting, you might be surprised to learn that, for thousands of children around the world born with cleft lip and palate, they can be a helpful tool in comprehensive cleft care. Lilia, who was born with cleft lip and palate in 2020, is one of the many patients who received this care. 

As a toddler, Lilia underwent two surgeries to treat cleft lip and palate with Operation Smile’s surgical program in Puebla, Mexico. Because of Operation Smile’s comprehensive care, it wasn’t long before her personality transformed: Lilia went from a quiet and withdrawn toddler to an exuberant, curious explorer, babbling, expressing herself with a variety of sounds, and engaging with others like any child her age. 

Lilia is now a healthy five-year-old, with the same cheerful attitude and boundless energy. Her progress is the result of care at every level, from surgery to speech therapy to ongoing support at home—but it’s also evidence that small, sustained interventions throughout it all can make a meaningful difference. 

Cleft Conditions: A Global Problem

Since 1982, Operation Smile has provided cleft lip and cleft palate surgeries to more than 500,000 patients worldwide with the help of generous volunteers and donors. Cleft conditions are congenital conditions, meaning they are present at birth. With cleft lip and palate, the lip or the roof of the mouth do not form fully during fetal development. Cleft conditions put children at risk for malnutrition and poor weight gain, since their facial structure can make feeding challenging. But cleft conditions can have an enormous social impact as well: Common difficulties with speech can leave kids socially isolated and unable to meet the same developmental milestones as their peers. 

Surgery is a vital step in treating cleft conditions, but it’s also just one part of a much larger solution. Organizations like Operation Smile emphasize the importance of multi-disciplinary teams that provide comprehensive, long-term care to patients across many years. This approach, which includes oral care, speech therapy, nutritional support, and psychosocial care, not only aids in physical recovery from surgery but also helps children develop the skills and confidence to eat easily, speak clearly, and engage in everyday life. This ensures that each patient receives the full range of support they need to thrive. 

A Playful (and Powerful) Solution

Throughout a patient’s care, simple tools like bubbles can play a meaningful role from start to finish. 

Immediately before surgery, children are often in a new and unfamiliar environment far from home, some of them experiencing a hospital setting for the first time. When care providers or loved ones blow bubbles, it’s a simple yet effective technique: Not only are the children soothed and distracted, the bubbles also help create a sense of joy and playfulness that eases their anxiety. 

In speech therapy, bubbles can take on an even more important role. Blowing bubbles requires controlled airflow, as well as the ability to form a rounded “O” shape with the lips, which are skills that children with cleft conditions may struggle to develop. Practicing these skills with bubbles allows children to gently strengthen their facial muscles, improve breath control, and support the motor skills needed for speech development. Beyond that, blowing bubbles can help kids connect with their parents or providers in a way that’s playful, comforting, and accessible even for very young patients. 

Finally, bubbles often follow patients with cleft conditions home in the “smile bags” that each patient receives when the surgical procedure is finished. Smile bags, which help continue speech therapy outside of the hospital setting, can contain language enrichment booklets, a mirror, oxygen tubing, and bubbles. While regular practice with motor skills can help with physical recovery, small acts of play help as well, giving kids space to simply enjoy themselves and join in on what peers are able to do.

Bubbles at Home and Beyond

Today, because of Operation Smile’s dedication to comprehensive cleft care, Lilia is now able to make friends and speak clearly, all things that could have been difficult or impossible before. Instead of a childhood defined by limitation, Lilia—and others around the world—can look forward to a childhood filled with joy, learning, discovery, friends, and new possibilities.  

CTA: Lilia’s life was changed for the better with the care she received through Operation Smile. Find out how you can make an impact in other children’s lives by visiting operationsmile.org today. 

To be a great fiction writer requires understanding basic story structures and being clever enough to disguise them so your audience doesn’t know they’re watching or reading something they’ve seen before. Academics suggest that there are only a finite number of plots and structures, but that number varies based on who’s doing the talking.

Writer Kurt Vonnegut, best known for his satirical works on American politics and culture,........

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