When "The Next Generation" means Star Trek reruns...

My Uterus, Husband, and I Agree - No Children

I remember sitting at the family dinner table last Easter, when my brother and his fiancee brought up the idea of children to my mom. The exact words escape me, but the point was "sorry Mom, no grandkids from us." Reading the article linked above, courtesy of The Frisky, brought me back to that conversation and several others I've had with my Mom on the topic since then.

You see, I am now my mother's only hope.

My s-i-l to be has great reasons for not wanting children, among them the exact explanation that Divine Caroline brings up: "I want it to be all about my husband...I want his life to be all about me, too." Well played, and more admirable than lamentable, IMHO.

Slightly unrelated but still in the same ballpark of questions and answers is the argument I got against marriage to begin with -- if someone has no respect for a particular institution or feels that they can live their life fully and happily without it, why on earth would they do it to satisfy another's wishes, or just to fit in with a crowd that is increasingly coupled up?

When I was a little girl all I wanted when I came home from a hard day of being the President, a doctor, a lawyer, a ballerina and my night shift at McDonald's was to come in the house to see my handsome, sweet and successful husband and kiss my 2-3 well-behaved and intelligent children. (Ambition has never been a problem...) Now I'm almost 23. I look around me and see college friends...high school friends...married with one or two children and I think, good for you. If you're doing what makes you happy then stick with it. But it's not for me.

And I don't know into which category I fall just yet. It's possible that my disdain for marriage and my unwillingness to have children are just by-products of my generation, where it's acceptable and even encouraged to expand your horizons and make something of yourself before you attempt to make something of someone else. Maybe I'll change my mind.

But maybe I won't. If I don't, though, and you feel the need to start asking questions, look for this article in your inbox.

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