For as long as I can remember, I have been telling friends, family, and strangers my wish to not have children. In high school, I even wrote 200 reasons not to have kids (how I wish I still had this list for comedic purposes).

When I first started working at Blooma 7 years ago, my family found it hilarious that me of all people would now be spending my days with babies on my lap while answering the phones, listening to pregnancy journeys, and being surrounded by new parents and their little ones. I personally have never found it surprising why Blooma has been the perfect place for me to be and this is why:

Having a child is not the goal at Blooma. Being supported, educated, and empowered in your personal life choices is our objective.

Yes, we specialize in the prenatal and postpartum journey, and I’m so glad that we do, because this can be a particularly isolating period for so many new parents. However, I’ve always felt that Blooma’s objective runs much deeper than tips and tricks for new parenthood. There is a village mentality here that rejects the notion that you have to do life alone, that you have to figure out how to be a parent without help, that you have to overcome your obstacles without a shoulder to cry on.

Some of my best friends, best memories, and most rewarding moments have been at Blooma. I have not once felt pressured to have kids, nor excluded because I don’t want the same things. I’ve actually felt more welcome at Blooma amongst all the parents and future parents than I do out in the world where I have been the recipient of many tone-deaf comments like, “It’s just a phase, you’ll change your mind.”

When I look around the room at one of my regular weekly all levels Flow Yoga classes, my heart is full to see all of the people who seem to also feel and experience the warm embrace that is Blooma. There are teenagers, grandmas, grandpas, single parents by choice, parents of older kids, childless by choice adults and pregnant people.

What brings us all together? The underlying thread that “You belong just as you are, that the love is not conditional upon the choices you make or don’t make.”

Regardless of where you are on your parenting or non-parenting journey, I hope that you know that you are whole and complete, just as you are, and that you are worthy of love and a sense of belonging.

Meghan Foley is the Director of Operations and teaches 3 weekly all levels Flow Yoga classes at Blooma. Her classes focus on alignment, connection and playfulness. When she’s not on her mat, you can find her cooking up Ayurvedic recipes, making her own spice blends and voraciously reading nonfiction.