When To Become a Dad?

When Mick Jagger became a father for the eighth time last year at the ripe old age of 73, it threw up much debate about the potential risks to your baby in having a child so late in life.

Things have changed from our parents’ generation, when starting a family within a few years of finishing high school was the norm; 30 is the new 20 and all that. This has given men a decade – or more in many cases – of adolescence, leaving many 30-somethings ill-equipped mentally for fatherhood.

Personally, I wasn’t ready when I unexpectedly became a dad at 32 – I  was still a boy who didn’t know how to look himself, never mind a tiny human! – but I learnt to roll with it. Slowly.

So, when to become a dad?

Is there a “perfect age”?

What are the pros and cons of going early or late?

British GQ columnist Tony Parsons nails it best in this excellent piece. There’s also some reflections on Parsons’ now-defunct first marriage that spawned his first child. Take five and give it a read.

Becoming a father made me a man. Bringing up my son taught me how to love someone – truly love someone – apart from myself. How to take responsibility, how to be more capable of the selfless act, how to – again and forever – love.

If you’re a bloke sitting on the fence, delaying becoming a dad until “the right time” – don’t. There’s no such thing.

And not everyone, thank God, can be like Mick Jagger. None of us have the moves, anyway.