The Key to Aging Without Having Kids
Last Sunday, 20 women in their late 30s, 40s, and 50s gathered around a long, narrow table in West LA. They’re members of a social club designed to bring together people who don’t have kids for a wide range of activities. I knew of a variety of social organizations, but never one for nonparents. Why, you might wonder, would someone need such a club?
Once you’re over 30, it isn’t easy finding new friends who don’t have kids. One by one, often in quick succession, friends who become parents immerse themselves in rearing babies into teenagers. It’s an 18-year expanse of time where we don’t see these friends much, if at all. As our interests and time constraints diverge, the main thoroughfare of family doesn’t include the likes of us very much. We travel alternate routes of our own design. We can feel isolated.
Parents, on the other hand, have PTA, playdates, carpools, and more to mingle with other moms and dads. Tips and tricks are shared. Friendships are forged. Networks of mutual © Psychology Today
