A little over a year ago, my mom passed away. Since then, I’ve been reflecting on life, on the things she tried to teach me, and on one of the biggest questions I never really considered when I was younger: Is having kids worth it?

My mom used to tell me that having children was one of the happiest, most powerful, and most meaningful things she ever did. She said she was grateful to have had my brother and me. And at one point, she said something that, at the time, I thought was absolutely ridiculous:

She told me that before she had kids, she thought she understood what love was. But after having us, she realized she hadn’t truly understood love at all.

I was probably in my late teens or early twenties when she said this, and I remember thinking, Come on. That sounds like a Hallmark card. What does that even mean?

But now, years later, and as a parent myself, I finally understand what she meant. And it’s made me think a lot about whether having kids is really worth it.

The R...