Thanks, but no thanks....

Stanley here. You know what the funniest thing about Arabia is? It’s the little differences. I mean they got the same stuff over here that we had over there, but here it’s just a little different. My favorite recently has been the standard inanities that begin a conversation with someone you’re just getting to know. In The States, when the conversation eventually arrives at “So…kids?” and I say “No, thank you.” People just laugh and put you off with something patronizing like, “Oh, you say that now…but wait till you get a little older….” Here it’s a little different. The conversation begins the same, but when I get to the part about not wanting to have kids the reaction varies slightly, usually beginning with an open mouthed look of horror and shock at the very concept of opting out of what would seem to be the only reason to be live, work, or marry. This is usually followed by questions tactfully designed to skirt around the fact that I’ve just admitted a major flaw in my humanity. Maybe there’s some medical problem? So maybe kids are annoying to me? It’s a cultural thing I suppose. I explain to them that it’s unusual, but not all that rare in The States to opt out of child rearing. But I’m thinking of starting to tell people that I want to have as many kids as possible, just to avoid damaging their concept of order in the universe.