I totally respect that, and for many it is the right decision. But note, that we also change ourselves as people with time, and what we want now might not be what we want in the future. It’s not constant, so priorities and wishes might change. I had kids a bit later in life - and I’ve done it all until then - until it started to be boring. Cocktails on beaches, travels, dinners in fancy restaurants, beers in bars, ski vacations, hikes, boats, been around the globe etc - all became routine.
Kids rewire your brain and you actually become a different person. You get an extra life experience. Some people say that parenthood is like “playing poker with real money” (i.e., high stakes, real consequences, skin in the game), while life without children can feel more like playing with play money or “just for fun,” in the sense that the stakes emotionally and financially are perceived as lower. I get to live once, so getting the full menu and dealing with it completes the experience. On a separate note, I know some older people, in their 60s, and life became a bit lonely for them, although they have FU money and can do whatever they want. We do change with time and what we want know is not what we’ll want in the future (just like what we wanted 5-10-15 years ago might not be what we want today).
