There are no age rules for parents

I just read Meredith Resnick’s article about the pitfalls of having children later in life [“ ‘Too Young to Have a Mother That Old,’ ” Dec. 10]. Although I understand her pain, I would hate to discourage anyone from having children in their 40s due to concerns about aging/dying.

I had my first child at 33 and my second at 40. I do not believe I would have made a good mother in my 20s, because I was too self-absorbed and had not yet found a man I wanted to share my life with.

I have a friend who is 51, has children younger than mine and whose mother-in-law is in her mid-80s and very active and involved with my friend’s children.

Every individual situation is different, and important life decisions such as when (or if) one is to begin a family should be made on a case-by-case basis.

Jean Burke-Martinez

South Pasadena