Sweet Life

It’s been over a month now and Jean-Paul is still living with me. It’s the longest my boy has ever stayed. I’m afraid to hope, to jinx it; he might bolt again. Still, he seems to be settling in more and more, and with four solid weeks together, we’ve begun to fall into a kind of rhythm of everyday family life. It’s the first time I’ve ever experienced it.
 
When I come home from work, JP is there, waiting. When I am off in another room, I can still hear him, perhaps foraging in the refrigerator or running the shower. He’s the first person I see in the morning and the last at night. I will admit, it was hard for me to adjust to another being in my space for so many days on end; I’ve gotten used to being alone. But now, I’m comforted by the sounds of his life as they fill the quiet spaces of mine. It’s a sweet mix. A sweet life.
 
Thing is, belonging has a bitter side: the longing. I don’t like that feeling at all. As soon as you have something to hold onto, you begin to fear losing it. You begin to cling too tightly. It’s a weakness to need like that. To fear like that. To know with certain dread that one day I will come home to find JP gone again. It’s just a matter of time.
 
Sweetness like this can’t last long. Can it?