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| Photo by dharmasphere |
A: They are a consolation prize for losing your freedom.
Badumbump.
We recently had dinner with one of my husband's colleagues, Pete, and Pete's lovely wife Maria.
Pete and Maria have two kids.
Pete asked if we planned to have kids. We said yes.
I highly recommend it, he said. It brings a completely different dimension to life.
Pete told us that before he had kids, he got nervous when parents made jokes about the hardships of parenthood. Is it really that awful? He wondered. Do they regret it? Are they pining for their child-free days?
But now that he has kids, he gets it (and makes jokes too). The trials and tribulations are real. But it's because parenthood is fundamentally worth it that he can joke about the hassles.
I can relate to this. I used to feel slightly unnerved when people joked about their marriage. A small corner of my mind would wonder, do they regret getting married? Do they wish they were still single and "free"?
Now I get it. The jokes can just be jokes. They are not a cover for deep-seeded regret and longing for single days. That kind of regret would be hard to laugh about. I can joke because for me there's no question of it not being worth it.
That's all for now. Gotta go hang out with my ball and chain :)
