Tracey:

You hit the proverbial nail on the head. Like you, I was a quiet, friendless child. I loved to read, and lived in a world of literature. My schoolmates were loud, overactive kids whose homes did nothing to inculcate a sense of civil behavior. And, yes, I was taught that “children should be seen and not heard.” I learned that you had to earn your right to speak among adults, by having mature conversations on mature topics.

Today, apparently, adults are supposed to “talk down” to children. B.S. By the age of eight, I was having conversations with my parents’ friends on topics as diverse as psychology, philosophy, and politics. I not only did not die from the experience, but I grew up with a sense of self-respect because I had earned my place at the intellectual table.

Sadly, in today’s immature society, we apparently don’t understand that being childfree is not a bizarre condition, but a mature decision on the part of those of us who realize that we are not suited for parenthood and that forcing us into that unwanted role would hurt both parent and children.