This is your only life. You will only have one chance to get on this ride, to create and mentor another human being from childhood, to possibly know the purest form of unconditional love, someone who will have a stronger emotional attachment to you than any spouse or lover will, for better or worse.

There are a lot of experiences that are just the same thing with different twists. For me, being a parent is unlike anything I've experienced. Literally the minute I became responsible for another human my life had a purpose it never had before.

If your life is set and you have a complete plan to personal transcendence, then fine. But raising a child with someone you love is a wild ride that cuts to the core of the human element.

As far as money goes, who gives a shit. Life isn't a financial battle. If it were, noone would have pets either. You can't take it with you.

The older you get the more the outside world fades to grey as it does the same things over and over again, but a child is the epitome of color, constantly growing and learning.

And if you are kind to it, it may end up protecting you as you age, even when all your friends and lovers are dead and are losing their wits.

What is the point of life? Personally, I want to taste as much as I can while I'm here, to experience this world alongside the others, but the most exotic fruit to me was parenthood. Not just a regular challenge, but one that grows, adapts, and surpasses you.

(Adopt if you want, but there is sill a special experience to be had in delivery and placing a newborn on your chest, knowing that the child has likely inherited the things you love and hate about yourself)