An Ode to Great Parents

I know that it may seem that I'm very down on children in general.  (When the blog is about being childfree, is that really surprising?)  One of the problems I have with children is that there are a shockingly small number of good parents.  I deal with children and parents quite regularly in my everyday life, and have come to the conclusion that very few people truly are "good parents."

This is, of course, not something you're allowed to say.  In our society, everyone is a good parent.  We go out of our way to reassure people of this from the moment they conceive (or even consider conceiving).  "Oh, you're going to be such a good mom!"  No one ever says, "Hmmm, have you really thought this through?  I mean, you two are nice people, sure, but I'm not so sure how you'll do as parents..."  When you add to this the fact that we have become an over-entitled, "don't judge me" society and, well, things were bound to get interesting. 

Please don't mistake me, I do not think society is going to hell in a hand-basket.  (Okay, I occasionally do, but it's a fleeting thought and I try to remember that people have thought the world was going to hell in a hand-basket from the moment there were people so it's probably not true...)  What I do think is that like everything else people do, parenting requires skill, talent, and effort, and that there are people who are better at it than other people. 

My girlfriend is a great mother, and I admire her every time I see her interact with her child.  I also see how much work she puts into her role as a mother each and every day, and I openly admit that I have no desire to follow in her footsteps.  Perhaps the best thing about my girlfriend is her honesty.  She tells it like it is and will openly state that the past years have not been magical or really even fun.  There's been fun parts, but mostly it's been a great deal of hard work.  (She says she's having more fun now that he's a bit older and they're doing a lot more, and it's easy to see how spending time with her child would be a delightful endeavor.  He has grown into a wonderful little person.) 

I salute good parents everywhere.   I wish there were a lot more of you.