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Describing the beauty of parenthood

Categories: Just For Moms, Development, That's Entertainment

My friend Lisa* was over at my house the other night. We sat on bar stools at the kitchen counter after I put Nolan to bed and sipped white wine, talked about passions, soul food and matters of the heart.

"I don't know if I ever really want kids,"she confided in me,"And now would be the time to know, you know? I'm 33."
She stopped and I hesitated, drew breath, and decided to say nothing.
"It's just...I love my lifestyle, "she continued,"I love to travel and drink wine and sleep in till noon on Sundays if I want."
I nodded, sipped my wine, and ate an olive.
I wanted to tell her: But the love of your child is ten thousand times more powerful than your first trip to an unspoiled beach in Greece. If given the choice between sleeping in till 11:00 and getting up at 5:00 AM, you'll gladly stand in the silence of your baby's room, watching his chest rise and fall and marveling at the silken skin of his cheek. And on days when you have your freedom back, when you can fly to Amsterdam for the weekend or go snowboarding in Washington, instead you will think of your baby and feel half full and wonder how you were a person before him.

Instead I say,"I miss travel some days, for sure."

It's nearly impossible to describe what it is like to have a piece of your soul running on the earth beside you. Strangely, the best description of parenthood I've ever read is one that can be found on the shopping bags of my favourite brand of yoga pants:

"Children are the orgasm of life. Just like you did not know what an orgasm was before you had one, nature does not let you know how great children are until you have them."

But I spare Lisa the awkwardness of attempting to explain how children are like orgasms. But secretly I hope she has kids one day, so she knows, too.

*I change the name of almost everyone I write about here, so that they don't google themselves and writhe in horror at the unintentional publicity of our discussions. Just so you know.

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