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My Barbie was never a mother
Charlynne Curiel
MexicoGALLERYCONVERSATION
When I was in fourth grade the nuns at my Catholic school made us take an egg to school, paint it and take loving care of it for a...
I am a thirty-one year old woman who was born and raised in a South American country, where a woman is expected to study, but not too much; work, but not too much; and get married and start a family. At least, that’s how it was before; things are slowly changing.
As for why I don’t want to have children, I personally don’t like the idea of having something growing inside me that I can’t control; the idea of my body being deformed by a big belly, or just not being in control of something inside me that provokes physical, moral and spiritual changes scares me. Labor and delivery terrify me. And I also don’t like the idea of life changing so much, that your time and privacy are reduced to seconds, which is what happens when you have children.
I don’t hate children, in fact I like them. They’re fun, sweet and entertaining. But to spend time fussing over someone and showing profound love, well, for that I prefer a man, who is a little bigger and doesn’t need diapers or a bottle. To worry excessively and fret over things is what work, other projects, and the world are for.
Just because I have decided not to have children doesn’t mean that I’m against the idea of motherhood. I have (and still do) enjoyed being a mother to my siblings because I am the oldest daughter, and I will also enjoy it still when my parents grow old. For years now I have been a mother to my partners, whom I’ve taken care of when they’ve become ill, made their favorite foods, picked out the right clothes, trimmed their beards, gave advice for and listened to their many problems.
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