In America, there is a persistent, pernicious belief that the only way to be invested in a child's life is to be a parent and, for women, to give birth to that child.
The seemingly inexhaustible discussion around this topic leaves out is that many people who say they don't want to birth or parent children do have children in their lives—other people's.
Rarely do we talk about the pleasure of these little people, or how transformative it is to have children in your life whom you're not raising.
I’ve been reminded of the joys of these relationships this summer. Most of the kids in my life, I have known since birth.
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