You don’t NEED to do anything.
But for an example, nobody knew my father like my mother and I did. Nobody learned as many things from him as I did. He’s gone now, but he lives on as I teach the things I learned from him to my sons. Even the things about him that I didn’t agree with help to form what I teach them. And they, in turn, will teach it to their children. My father will live on, as will I, long after I am gone. A legacy is important, because it makes the most out of our short time here.
I apologize if I offended you. It wasn’t my intention to denigrate anyone’s choices that have already been made. I don’t, however, feel that it is completely honest to sell to younger people how ‘happy’ a childless lifestyle is.
I do have a number of friends who are older with no children. I love them dearly, but I cannot help but notice the gaping hole in their otherwise ‘happy’ lives. Some will admit it and some won’t, but it’s still there.
For another example, I recently just got finished handling the estate of a dear friend of my mother’s who died having no children. I spent the better part of a year trying to find someone to take (even for free) the objects of her passion and life’s work and nobody would. Nobody cared. I live 800 miles away from there now and couldn’t take it all here, so much of her life’s work ended up getting thrown out with the trash. I think leaving a legacy is a better option.
” I spent the better part of a year trying to find someone to take (even for free) the objects of her passion and life’s work and nobody would.”
That is a common problem even if one has kids.
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HOWEVER... when you talk about passing on what you learned from your parents, or from your own life, that I do understand. I have no children, but as an English teacher, I've had a chance to contribute a little, at least, to about 2,000 children so far. And I have developed a curriculum of classic novels that is very rooted to my own values and my parents and grandparents, so... the way you said that makes sense to me.