How Big and Small Families Can Impact the World as We Know It

              Is it anyone else’s business how many kids you have? Well that depends. There are two categories in which it could be or could not bet other people’s business.

              The first category is Personal. In your personal life, you can decide how many kids you have, right? You can talk to your spouse and together you figure it out. Maybe you only want 3 kids, so you fit in a small car. Maybe you have always wanted a big family, so you decide to have 8 kids. It could also depend on where you are at financially and if you can afford to have more than one or two kids. Perhaps it could even depend on your family expectations or religion. Maybe you are not able to have kids but want them or can have them but do not want them. Whatever the reason, it is up to you in your personal life to decide how many kids you will have. The other factor in your personal life is how it will affect your kids. For instance, what happens if you and your spouse are only children, and you only have one kid? How will that affect them? Let’s take a look at it – your child will have no siblings, no cousins and no aunts and uncles. Everything in the family will be focused on them, so what happens when they go to college? They will have never had to tolerate another person in the home besides their parents. They also can have a lot of pressure on them because they are the only one to do chores, they are expected to be the best they can be for their parents, they will need to take care of their parents when they are old, etc. So, in conclusion, there are a lot of factors when personally deciding how many kids to have – all of which are not really anyone’s business.

              Alright. Now that we have talked about the personal side of things, let’s talk about the other category, which is how it will impact the world. Have you ever thought of that? That having more or less kids will have an affect on the world? Do you think it can? For all of those who answered yes… you are correct! In the 1940’s to 1960’s we had what is called the “Baby Boom” which was when all the soldiers came back, got married and everyone was having lots of kids. The population in 1950, which was during that time period, was 2.4 billion. Just 30 years later in 1980, we had nearly doubled that number to be 4.4 billion people worldwide. Today, the population is at 7.7 billion people, with a fertility rate of 2.5. See, the “magic number” is 2.13 – if the rate goes below that our population will begin to decrease. Some people may see that as a good thing – maybe we will have less homeless people or more job availabilities and perhaps it could be like that the first few years, I don’t know. But what happens after 20 years, or 30? Will we have enough people for the jobs already created and the jobs that will be created? How will it affect your kids? Will they have the same opportunities we have today?

              My point is, it is always our own decision how many kids to have. But what is also important to think about, is how it will affect the world around us. So, what do you think? If you don’t know how many kids you want, just remember that it is always your decision, but also remember how it could affect your kids, and the world.