I was talking with a friend recently about having children. I have two and, although things are tough about half the time, the other half is pretty amazing. I never considered myself as one with a “mother’s heart” as my grandma used to call it, but since having children, I can see what a special thing it is. Yes, children are stressful. They are expensive. They are noisy. Sometimes people stare at me with my little human tantrums and I have to wonder if any of it is worth it.
It seems like society is focusing more on “do it all for yourself,” or “take care of number one.” But having children is exactly the opposite — there is no more “number one,” or at least not in the way that popular society sells it. Children are much more rewarding, because they are rewards I couldn’t get any other way. When my boys hug me at the end of a long day and tell me that they love me, none of the grief matters. I applaud anyone willing to have children and take themselves out of the “all about me” equation.
Jennifer Brown
Provo