To my single friends: The selfishness of motherhood

There is a misconception sometimes in my mind and other mothers that when you become a mother, you become instantly selfless.  It is definitely true that having a baby gets rid of some of your selfishness.  You can't worry about only yourself.  There's another little one relying on you and you frequently have to put your baby's needs before yourself.  But. There's still this reserve of selfishness.  I think we frequently save it to unwittingly display on our single or childless friends.

I was thinking about this as I've had the opportunity in the last month or so to spend some time with several of my single and/or childless friends.  The truth is that not all single people are selfish and not all mothers are selfless.  I find that when I'm chatting with some of these friends, they spend a lot more time asking me about my children and life than I spend asking them about their families and lives.  It's tempting to just go on and on about your own children. It can become a very unbalanced conversation/relationship.  Thank you to my single friends with whom I can hang out and not have it be all about my life or children.  You teach me much about the importance of  a 2 sided relationship and true selflessness!