At a quarter to five'o clock this morning, Tyson starts crowing and wakes me up. Just then, as if on cue, Amanda comes up to rub under my hand for some lovin'. Then Kelly rolls over and makes sleeping noises in my face.

And it's ten minutes before I need to get up so I can be to work at 6:00, to beat all of the people who are working for me on the current project into work, so they all understand the urgency and level of commitment it takes. And I'm thinking about all the misguided trust those people have in me and the misguided trust Kelly and the critters we've purposely or situationally taken under out care haven in me.
 
If they all only knew how irresponsible and lazy I am at heart and how a part of me just wants to get in the car and drive west.

Except that I am west. And there's no place further to run to. I've already fled, and took some of my charges with me. So here we are and we've dug in.

So at 4:45, I look about and assess the critters in my charge. I like that people and animals chose to depend on me and I like that I chose to be dependable for them. I work a lot and I'm tired, but my life is pretty good, and some people and critters are better off because they live with or near me and because I do what I do for them.

I'm an adult.