Having a family is something that almost everyone wants. Getting to experience the joy of having kids and starting a family is a goal people strive to achieve sometime in their lifetime. Having a family is the "purpose of our life." There are so many benefits that you can get from having kids.
According to a new study, The American Birth Rate has declined for the sixth consecutive year in 2020. Resulting in the lowest number of babies born since 1979. In 2020 only 3.6 million babies were born in the United States during that time. This marked a 4% decline from the previous year before, says the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National Center for Health Services (US Birth Rate Falls 4% to Its Lowest Point Ever, 2021).
Why are fertility rates so low? Some people may say it's the fear of commitment, divorce, and responsibility. In today's society millennials have multiple fears of having kids. An article written by Kaya Gravitter titled, See Why Millennial Are Scared To Have Kids, talks about the fears millennial women have today when it comes to having kids. Some major worries these women have include being able to afford a child, or the worry of not being a good enough parent. There are so many fears that come from both these worries. Kaya Gravitter then asked multiple women that were considered millennials, to see what their thoughts on having kids were. Many came up with the same worries of not being a good enough parent. A 29 year-old woman who was questioned responded with, "I was always scared and wanted to adopt because this world is harsh, especially if you are a girl." Another 24 year-old women responded with, "I grew up in a
family of 6 children. I am the eldest, so I helped my parents a lot. I’ve seen and felt the sacrifices that you have to make as a parent to have children. I don’t know if it is because I am selfish or another reason, but that is what makes me not want to have kids. I also never had the “feeling” that everybody is talking about. So I don’t know.”(Gravitter, 2019). Becoming a parent, there are so many things you have to sacrifice for your children, but those are just some of the things that come with parenting. Having a family takes time, energy, and money as well as giving time, energy, and money.
There are so many families that don't have the opportunity like most families to have children. If we are lucky enough to have kids, it is important to take advantage of that blessing given special to us by our Heavenly Father. Brigham Young said, " The children that we don't have may be sent to families where you could have given them what they don't have." God sent us here to replenish and multiply the Earth. He measures our success by following the guidelines of The Family Proclamation. There are so many endless blessings that we can receive by following The Family Proclamation and choosing to have a family of our own. We will always have those fears of whether we are good enough to become parents or not. Over the years being able to watch my parents raise all my siblings has taught me that it's okay to mess up. Messing up gives us more opportunities to learn and grow from our mistakes. No parent is perfect, but it's the effort and love they put in that makes them so great. In the end you will be able to see all the blessings having a family can bring into your life.
References
Gravitter, K. (2019, February 13). See Why Millennials Are Scared to Have Kids. Medium. Retrieved January 13, 2022, from https://medium.com/@gravitterkaya/see-why-millennials-are-scared-to-have-kids-21af0041ab82
US birth rate falls 4% to its lowest point ever. (2021, May 6). BBC. Retrieved January 13, 2022, from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-57003722
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