Child Free
My being a poet isn’t ambition.
It’s my way of being alone.
-Fernando Pessoa
My life was not
“changed forever”
by the birth of a child.
I liked my life
just the way it was-
interludes of adventure
surrounded by long
spaces of silence.
I am child free.
Every time a woman
is described as “childless”
a collective cry
goes out.
We are not homeless.
We are not careless.
We are not less.
We are more.
Woman more.
Child free.
Free to experience ourselves
fully, to hear silence deeply,
to be alone without excuse.
I have never wanted children.
This is not an apology.
This is neither decision nor choice.
This was something given and always known
like the color of one’s eyes
or an ear for language.
This is why I wake listening.
I wake early. It is quiet.
It stays that way all day.
June 22, 2011
"Interludes of adventure surrounded by long spaces of silence." You have captured the essence of 'child free!' We who are older notice the noise of children more than we once did. We probably did then, too, but were 'used to it.' And the noise of children seems to always involve at least a distraction and often a demand for some kind of attention. It is fortunate that today, with examples like you, more people are embracing lifestyles they can create themselves. Sometimes that can be more difficult than just 'falling into' an institution like motherhood! So congratulations on your celebration of the solitary-when-you-want-it-to-be life!
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing and risking. This is a lovely poem and an important statement.
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