This just reiterates the issue: Why does anyone care what anyone else does? Why must one judge another's choices if those choices affect only that person? If you want to have kids, go for it, and be the best mom you can be. If you don't, then don't. Granted, as humans, it's hard not to look at someone else and take a complete unbiased stance about that person's decisions, especially if those decisions don't correspond with our own choices or values. That's just human nature. But recognizing it is one thing; actually following through with the judgement and putting the other person down is another.
When I first met my husband's family, who are ALL completely focused on The Cycle of Life (almost all conversations, I've found, are focused on pregnancy, labor / birth, children, etc.), one of his sisters-in-law asked me, "Do you have children?" When I said "No," she smirked and said, "OH, then you're not a woman. You aren't REALLY a woman until you've given birth." She dismissed me from that point on. Why did she say this? At the time, I was stunned into silence. Now, I think I understand. Since then, she has left all three of her children, is living with a different guy in a different state, and no longer is in contact with her kids or my husband's family.
I don't think anyone really knows where anyone else is coming from. And sometimes, we don't even know why we ourselves are doing what we're doing. It's hard to remember that, but once we do, our anger dissipates, and all we can feel--as others have posted--is sad for those who spend their time judging everyone else.
