Children - The miracle of life?

Recently, I've been wondering about the pros and cons of having children and I can honestly argue both ways. I've grown up with the notion that that is something that simply "must be done", no questions asked - so I never really did ask questions.

And funnily enough, I've bumped into so many situations since I've started this introspection which have drawn me deeper to the idea that "I would love to have kids someday" - like a couple on the bus looking excitedly over the wife's ultrasound pictures, like kids laughing uncontrollably when being tickled in the skytrain, like watching a father and child hold hands before crossing the street.....it makes me think - someday I want to experience the depth of emotion that comes with having your own child.

And then I was onbound an 18+ hour flight to Asia with approximately 200 hundred children (it seemed like it), all crying, screaming, yelling, kicking....and I wanted to go hide in the bathroom. The stewardess got suspicious after a while (was I smoking in there?!?) *lol* But in all seriousness, I thought to myself, oh golly, am I up for the challenge?

And then I saw them - an Indian couple surviving the same flight with their 6-month old daughter, exhausted, drained and everything you could imagine. They picked her up, held her in their arms as they disembarked, and I managed to catch that look of unconditional love and contentment in their eyes when they looked at her. It was pure, undiluted happiness.

Yea - I want a piece of that :) Sign me up in a couple of years! Till then, I'll stick myself in the bathroom between the toilet paper and the hand-sized sink and catch a couple of zzzzzz.... to prepare! *lol*