Today’s prompt is: Tell us about something you’ve done that you would advise a friend never to do.
What I would recommend a friend never to do is having kids young. I know it sounds like a no-brainer to some, but some people just really want to have kids young. I would suggest against having children as a teenager, because you really will miss out on getting to grow up and experience early adulthood.
I know that’s fine for some people, for a lot it isn’t. I struggle with wanting to explore adulthood but being a position where I can’t explore because I need to set that good example for my children and not make the mistakes that a young adult is typically ‘allowed’ to make to learn and grow from.
Having children at a young age means growing up quickly, without going through that ‘awkward’ phase as much as others get to. Which is kind of a good thing, but also kind of a bad thing too.
I do wish I could have experienced a young adulthood without children, not because I don’t love them, but because I would have liked to spread my wings and not become a recluse whose life at that age revolved solely around children to the point where I felt like I lost who I was, and didn’t know who or what I’ve become.
I don’t mean to offend anyone with this post, some people do just great as young parents and love it.
I love my kids, my life isn’t horrible, but I sometimes wonder what I would be like if I had the young adulthood that many of my high school friends have had.
