The Washington PostDemocracy Dies in Darkness

I’d always been baffled by people who wanted kids. Then my friend got pregnant.

Hearing her stories and seeing her baby has changed my thinking

Perspective by
Lily contributor
May 30, 2021 at 11:17 a.m. EDT
(Athena Naylor/Athena Naylor For The Washington Post)

The pandemic hit as my immediate group of friends and I prepared to turn 30. Some of us were making major life decisions, including parenthood.

As someone who doesn’t want kids and is in no position to have them, I watched via phone screen as my friend went through their pregnancy. They live thousands of miles away, and the pandemic left no option of safely visiting them. It was a surreal experience that brought up a lot of complicated feelings, all of which couldn’t possibly fit in a 10-panel comic.

But I wanted to consider how this situation, like many this past year, forced me to navigate uncertainty and allow hope to coexist with my fears.