What follows is the briefest of summaries about my feelings on parenthood.
Most people suck. My parents were (separately) very good at teaching me relevant things for life and now I’m a pretty good person for it. Kids are expensive and time-consuming, but I feel a little guilty not imparting good sense and knowledge on at least one member of the next generation. Also, like love, I think the feeling of being a [good] parent is like nothing else in the world and can only be appreciated by those who have experienced it first hand.
My brief summary:
I don’t want to reproduce.
I’m at least a little vain, and I don’t want the extra weight + stretch marks + baggy skin + saggy boobs that come with pregnancy. I also love to sleep, and everything I’ve heard and read tells me I will not sleep more than 3 hours a night for the first 6 months after the baby is born, to say nothing of the difficulties of sleeping while 9 months pregnant. I’m impatient and easily frustrated, and babies require incredible amounts of patience and a zen-like ability to remain calm in the face of mounting stress. Plus, I love doing things like traveling and going out with friends that either you can’t do with a small child, or would be severely limited by the presence of one.
I realize that parenthood is said to be the source of many of life’s greatest joys. To that I say, “It’s not for everyone.” The vast population of abused kids in the Child Protective Services system is more than enough evidence. Better to be completely candid with myself about my views now than to bring a new life into the world only to neglect or resent it because I discovered I really didn’t want it.
I also fully realize that my feelings may change in the future, so I’m not taking any permanent measures with regard to pregnancy prevention, but my gut feeling is that my outlook will remain fairly constant.
Oh ’tis a wacky world.
Probably will some day. I’m waiting until I’m actually looking forward to it, because right now I don’t. Not enough time in the day as is.
I think the fact that you tagged this entry with the word “responsibility” says quite a bit. Anyways, good discussion as always.
Having a child really sucks.
The End
In seriousness, it’s a HUGE LIFESTYLE CHANGE, however it’s not entirely bad. Those things you hear that are “ruined” after having a child, are really just small obstacles that there is almost always a solution for.