I think there is a tendency as we get older to think of "the good old days" and feel bad because young people can't or won't enjoy those same things. It's like you can travel around the world and see stuff and yet not be any more happy and self satisfied than someone who could not afford that but has family and friends and can't afford to travel or acquire the same toys. There's a saying by those in the field of psychology that happiness begins and ends withing the person and not outside. One of the finest pieces of literature is Frankel's "Man's s Search for Meaning". He was imprisoned in a NAZI concentration camp and witnessed friends and family murdered by the NAZI's. Of course there was no happiness in that but he remained centered because of his focus on the future. It's really an existential focus that allowed him to survive. I know this has nothing to do with children growing up (maybe it does) but I highly recommend the book for anyone interested..Here is one of the more famous quotes from the book :
"“Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose
one’s own way.”
Viktor E. Frankl, Man's Search for Meaning
What does this have to do with children playing ball in the street vs. playing video games. Probably nothing. I suppose I used this post to simply recommend one of my favorite books and it does deal with happiness (hint-it's elusive and if it's a target you will miss it. It must simply come to you as a result of the things that one does in his or her life)