I don't think I want to own a home or have children
'Keep up with the Joneses' - what's that?
Today’s newsletter is about as personal as I’ve ever gotten on the internet. It’s a subject, a least the part about children, which is still fairly contentious. It’s not something my family (particularly my parents) understands. It’s not the way any of my friends feel (that applies to both the home and the kids).
At this point in my life, aged 32, every single one of my friends is either a) pregnant b) trying to get pregnant c) a new mother, or d) excited for the day they become a mother.
They also all either a) own a home or b) are saving to buy a home.
To be someone who isn’t fussed about either can feel, at times, incredibly isolating. It’s to live a life diametrically opposed to societal expectations. It’s to actively choose to be left out of so many conversations—to be left out of a life-changing experience that I won’t be able to share with my closest friends.
Now of course, things can change. I could wake up in a few years’ time and decide I’d love to have kids (+ of course, yes, I may be too late).
I could wake up in a few years (/win the lottery/be unable to afford UK rents) and decide I want to purchase a home.
But for right now, and for the foreseeable future, I feel like the outlier in my friendship group. Whatever the opposite of ‘Keeping Up With The Joneses’ is—that’s me.
And so today, I wanted to share some of the reasons why I don’t want either of those things. If nothing else, hopefully it’ll make some people feel a little less alone.
As this is so personal, I’ve put it behind a paywall. Not to try and convince you to upgrade—purely to give myself a little bit of protection. I hope you understand.
Now, onto the reasons why.