Do you think all women are meant to have children? This mom doesn't.

Mama Don't Preach: Thoughts on Respecting Parenthood Decisions

" . . .Thrilled as I am to be a mother and to hang with this astoundingly
adorable little person sprung from within, I refuse to jump on this particular parental bandwagon, the one packed with proselytizers peddling their baby-centric life view.
. . .
I'm here as a new parent to stand up for all those nonparents out there -- the ones who haven't yet made up their minds about kids and the ones who definitely have -- and proclaim that there is nothing wrong with not having children. I did it for more than three decades and led what I'd consider a pretty rich life, filled with learning, love, travel, adventure, laughter...and other people's children.

You're not being selfish. Your life won't be empty. And you're certainly not destined for a sad, lonely end. People can find meaning in their lives in ways that don't include progeny."

This five-part essay, excerpted from the new book Maybe Baby, is on American Baby of all places. Perhaps that is where such sentiments are most needed. If you cannot stomach the AmericanBaby.com website (and that well may be as much because of the incessant pop-ups as the content), it is also available on MSN.