5 of the Key Reasons to Start a Family

In the past, society frowned on individuals living alone to some extent. The societal expectation was that you would marry someone and start a family with them. These days, it’s more permissible that people live on their own if they don’t feel like cohabitating with anyone and having children. Let’s see 5 of the key reasons to start a family.

However, setting societal trends aside can benefit you in some significant ways if you start a family. Living with people can be a smart idea, and we’ll cover a few reasons why that is in the following article.

If You Have Children, You Can Be Proud of Them

If you cohabitate with someone or marry them, then you might decide to have children. Not everyone has children these days, but many people still want parenthood to be a big part of their lives.

If you determine that having children suits you, you can benefit from it in some very real and lasting ways. For instance, you can feel proud of your kids whenever they accomplish something.

As they grow, you might feel pride when they get straight As on their report card or when they pass their driver’s test and get their license. You might feel proud when they get into a meaningful career field, like if they become a long-term disability lawyer or something else noteworthy that makes a difference in society.

If You Have Kids, They Can Care for You in Your Old Age

Most people want to live a long life full of happy memories. If you’re lucky, this will happen to you. It could also be that genetics are on your side, and the people in your family tend to live a long time.

If you live into your 70s, 80s, or even longer, the chances are good that your health might not be perfect. Very few people live to an older age without experiencing either moderate or more severe health problems.

If you’re young right now, it’s hard to even think about that sort of thing. Time will pass, though, and you will get to that life stage eventually. Once you’re there, someone will need to take care of you and help you get through your days.

At that point, living alone can backfire. Maybe you never started a family, and it is at this point that you may wish you had. Your adult children can help care for you if you reach this stage, but if you never had any, you’ll need to rely on strangers.

You can always move yourself into a nursing home or retirement community if you can afford it, but it will be better if you can move in with your adult children. Even if they don’t have room or the ability to accommodate you, they can at least come visit you in the nursing home or assisted living facility frequently. You will undoubtedly be glad to see them.

You Can Share Your Life’s Triumphs

Life is all about accomplishments and failures. You try to learn from the failures and take pride in the achievements.

If you never start a family, then whenever you accomplish something, like getting a big promotion at work, you have no one with whom you can celebrate it. It’s not the same thing if you celebrate your victories with a dog, cat, or goldfish. If you have a human family with whom you can celebrate, you can take them out to dinner and toast your successes.

Without that, you might not feel quite the same when you get over some hurdle. You’ll feel content, but if you’re not striving to do better for your family at home, you might not feel quite as jubilant. Ideally, you want someone with whom you can share those feelings.

They Can Pick You Up When You’re Down

On the flip side of that, if life deals you a blow, as it will sometimes, you won’t have anyone to help pick you up. You might sink deep into depression if you don’t have some family members who can commiserate with you and remind you that you have inner strength and determination.

Family units stick together, and if you don’t have a family at home waiting to console you when things aren’t going your way, you will only have yourself on whom you can rely. You might be a very determined and self-motivated individual, but it can wear you down if you have to be your own cheerleader time and time again.

If you start a family, those are the individuals who you can always have in your corner. They will love and support you unconditionally.

You Can Pass on the Best Parts of Yourself

If you do have a family, and having children is a part of that, you can pass on the best parts of yourself to them. As a parent, you can try not to make whatever mistakes you felt your parents made. This is your chance to raise someone and install what you perceive to be the proper values.

When you start to see your children embody the qualities you are teaching them, you will know you have helped perpetuate the species and continue your bloodline. That matters a lot to some people.

Even if you decide not to have biological children and opt for adoption instead, you can still raise those children in the way you see fit. That is a tremendous responsibility, but it is also one that you might enjoy. You have a chance to shape a young mind, and that is something that you should never take for granted.

You might get along perfectly well without a family, but some people who are reluctant to start one sometimes forget all the good that can come from being a part of one. You are not somehow a lesser entity if you never start a family, but being a part of one is special. It’s often the best move to give yourself a chance to experience that.