Dual-income, no kids (DINK). Sounds fun and stress free – after all, men abhor responsibility. Maybe, it’s a matter of personal preference. But is it entirely our choice of preference or perhaps it was dictated to us? People nowadays have drastically changed in terms of opinion, worldview or life philosophy. Why? Corporate capitalism. It has been already planned out for us – designed by the men in suits, smoking big cigars in a secret boardroom.
We’ve been bred, from childhood to adulthood, to work for the big corporations. Its normalcy has been ingrained early in our young minds. Thanks to factory-style schooling, we’ve become disciplined, efficient, obedient money-making machine. Society has successfully kept our plates full with no time for, if we are being honest, the things that matters.
But I think this also has something to do with responsibility associated with having children. A helluva responsibility, but one that contributes the most to our character development.
But let's pause and take a look and see what there is to see in the world of dink families. It’s a completely different world, it’s convenient, trouble-free, and it’s all about ‘me’. We are child-free, we can do what we want, buy the things we want, go wherever and whenever we want. The only thing that eats up our time is our 9-5, and the rest we can invest in whatever interest us. There’s nothing wrong about this, right? We’re still doing our responsibility as a citizen of a country, we are still able to extend help to others in need, we contribute to the growth of the economy; we are perfectly functioning human being.
However, taking heed to the stark reality many of us live in, we see as well that many are forced not to have kids due to financial instability, inflation, wars, food insecurity and more. Life has become increasingly difficult, with many earning just enough to sustain themselves; living has become a matter of survival. Kids? It’s a luxury many of us can’t afford.
I couldn't give a definite answer yet because life is a journey and mine is still not over. Change is still an option. But when we sit on our beds at night, alone with our thoughts, and when these realizations begin to seep their way into our minds, what do we find? Is it a genuine satisfaction or a grim sadness of an unfulfilled life? If we are truly honest with ourselves, can we confidently say that having no kids is actually worth it? Or that having kids may not be worth it after all?
Photo is A.I. generated using freepik.com