What Ben Sasse’s Battle With Death Revealed About Modern Family Life

Today, I had the privilege of listening to Ben Sasse on The Ruthless Podcast. Obviously, he’s facing a terminal cancer diagnosis, so he’s spending a lot of time reflecting on life, politics, religion, and raising kids.

The whole conversation is worth a listen, but one part really hit me.

He pointed out how so many people in their teens, twenties, and thirties have almost zero experience with death. Our society has gotten so age-segregated that young people are rarely around the elderly anymore, let alone forming real bonds with them. So when death finally shows up in their lives, it feels completely foreign, both terrifying and disorienting. And because of that, a lot of them end up with some pretty misplaced priorities.

Consider how many retirees move to Florida or Arizona and settle into those big 55+ communities where everyone around them is the same age. They end up with very little day-to-day involvement in their kids’ or grandkids’ lives. Maybe they see each other once a year, or twice if they’re a particularly 'close' family. And let’s be honest—that’s simply not enough to form those deep, abiding attachments that used to hold families together across generations.

Families used to live on the same street, or at least in the same neighborhood. Kids would wander over to their grandparents’ house after school or pop by their aunt’s for a sweet treat.

Former U.S. Senator Ben Sasse delivered a heartfelt reflection on his life, parenting and politics to the "Ruthless Podcast" in an exclusive interview released Tuesday morning.
"Death sucks, but I'm not really scared," Sasse told the Fellas. "People are surprised by the answer. And I’m like, well, I guess I’ll talk for a little while."
Sasse was diagnosed with metastatic stage-four pancreatic cancer in December. Throughout the interview, Sasse emphasized the importance of being rooted.
"We have funeral plots in Arlington, Nebraska, 14 miles east of our house along the river in Dodge County, Nebraska," Sasse said. "I don’t want my family to ever give that up."

More generally, society is VERY age segregated in a way it was not three decades ago. One great thing about church life, from a young age my children regularly interacted with much older people who were invested in their development. Hard to get that many places. https://t.co/4Bn1d5zUAO
— Mark Hemingway (@Heminator) May 6, 2025

If families have decided not to live that way anymore, young families can still find this kind of community in churches. There are plenty of older folks there who would absolutely love it. They’re often longing for young children to spoil, laugh with, and pour into. It gives them a real reason to wake up in the morning.

Americans have made a real mistake choosing to live this way. My family is part of the multi-generational living movement, and I’m seeing more and more families decide it’s simply the best way to live. I hope a lot more catch on.

As an expat living in Thailand, I live with my Thai mother-in-law

We love each other deeply. I miss her when she's not there. She raises my daughter in an environment of unconditional love

I'm convinced multi generational living is the way its supposed to be https://t.co/dsqtRjj1Wz
— Temu Robot James (@ScottPh77711570) May 31, 2026

America might be the greatest country in the world, but we could still learn a thing or two from ancient societies.