“I did not know how to tell my parents, so I thought I would have to have an abortion”

The initial reaction of Junko, a 42-year-old college graduate in a full-time job, to her pregnancy was unambiguous:

at first I was happy I was pregnant. Very, very [happy]. It maybe sounds strange, but it was because I have never been pregnant before, I was so happy to be expecting a baby … Only the father of the child already had a family, so marriage was [not possible]. I myself have had a divorce, so I felt married life is somewhat difficult [for me], but I had a strong desire to have a child. I was already 33 when I got pregnant. Gradually [I felt] I was getting old, so at first I honestly thought even if I cannot get married I will have this child.

As Junko had a full-time job, which she knew she would be able to keep after bearing a child, little seemed to stand in a way of her passionate desire to become a mother.