If Only I Didn't Have Kids...

Photo by Evil Yoda

I recently announced at my workplace that my husband and I were moving across the globe for a few years.  I haven't hid the fact that this was a very real possibility for us, yet it seemed to take most of my co-workers by surprise.  The one comment I've heard over and over is, "I'd love to do something like that...  If only I didn't have kids..."

This comment is made with varying degrees of wistfulness and accusation.  I get the wistfulness.  When people talk about doing amazing things that I dream of one day doing, I also get wistful.  But the accusation I don't get.  The follow up comments are usually offered are then usually along the lines of, "It must be nice to not have kids."  Or if people are feeling venomous, "It must be nice to have no responsibility." 

I don't apologize for being childfree.  It was a very conscious choice on my part after many long discussions with my husband.  We talked about what we really wanted out of our lives, and determined that children were not a part of what we envisioned.  So now we have the freedom to do things like pick up and move to the other side of the world.  Besides, ultimately, I don't think children stop people from doing things like this, families move all the time.