The author has always known she doesn't want to have kids.
Courtesy of Lauren Melnick
When I was 6 years old, and tensions were high, my mom told me, "One day, your kids will be your future karma."I immediately yelled back, "Well, I won't have any kids then!"Feeling smug, I thought I'd outsmarted my mom and found a loophole to avoid future punishment. Little did I know that my cheeky statement was the start of what would become an unwavering, controversial life decision.I've never found the idea of having kids appealingGrowing up, that statement I'd thrown out at such a young age purely out of spite felt more and more like sound logic. Over time, I realized it actually was the right decision for me. I never felt a yearning to be a mother like the other girls; I never fantasized about playing house, and the more I learned about pregnancy, the cost of diapers, and time spent around babies, the more certain I became that having kids wasn't in my future.For 30 years, I held onto my certainty. Not wanting kids was one of the more stable things about me. In between all my gallivanting around the world, changing jobs, and discovering who I am, I always knew I never wanted to become someone's mother.Until I turned 35, and my certainty wobbled for the first time.A conversation made me question myselfOne day, my partner of nearly a year sat me down and told me he wanted kids within the next two years.
