I do not want kids and I am not going to change my mind

I have a tremendous amount of respect for mothers. They have committed to the lifelong task of caring for, nurturing and educating another human being. With that being said, I do not want to become a mother.

I have plans, big plans. I want to explore the world, I want to experience diverse and unfamiliar cultures, I want to taste the delicacies of countries I have never even heard of, and I want to learn more about myself in the process. Most of all, I want to help society.

My best friend since middle school recently had her first child, an incredibly smart and absolutely precious baby boy. The experience of meeting him just two hours after he was born is something I will remember for the rest of my life, and I am so happy that my friend has started to grow her family. While I am supportive of her choice to have a kid, I have no desire to reproduce. I am perfectly content with being the “cool aunt” coming around as often as possible to watch him grow into the amazing person I know he will be. This is not a decision I take lightly, and while many people are quick to assure me that I will change my mind or that I am just not ready yet, they do not understand how much I have thought this through.

Why would I want to bring someone into this world when I am fully aware of the dangers and downfalls of our society? It is so hard right now. We are still in rough economic times (at least for us college students having to work multiple jobs just to get by), our resources are being mishandled, and there are literally thousands of refugees without a home. Plus, why would I want to bring someone into this world when there are millions that already need one?

I do not want kids, because I want to help everyone. I want to help society as a whole learn to work together. I want to make our world a better place to be before I start bringing even more people into it. There are endless ways to better the world, and I do not want anything standing in my way from doing just that. With a child, travel becomes nearly impossible, funds are depleted more rapidly, and you must commit to putting your child first because, let’s be honest, you are the reason they are here in the first place. I am not ready for that and to be blunt, I never will be. There are always going to be ways to make society better or stronger, and I do not think I will ever give up trying to make it the best it can be.

So please, stop telling me I will change my mind when I am older, because it is getting really frustrating to explain that I am not here to reproduce and populate the planet. I am here to help a lot of people, and that is exactly what I am going to do.

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED FOR THE ODYSSEY