We humans can be pretty complicated, while at the same time, looking for the same things?
I saw a post written by someone who was chastising another for not being paid for their work. I had a friend, a full-blooded Navajo (and gay), who lived at my place for 5 years. He worked for me from time to time before, left for a couple of years to another state, and then just showed up at my door one day.
He happened to show up when my Mom was dying. He was trained as a home health care assistant, so when she came home to die, he was the one that knew what to do. I didn't.
The years passed, five of them, and he helped me with my garden, he worked on my little farm, and a lot of it was good. We prepared meals together, partied together, and I never charged him rent. We fell into a routine where he helped me out, and it was okay, until it wasn't.
It was all about I never intended him to stay when he first showed up, and as time went on, I know he resented his dependence on me. He was perhaps afraid to leave, but very trapped in his current existence as well. It became complicated.
When I finally told him to leave, he owed me money. It didn't matter, and I don't look back. He was an amazing experience in my life, and I hope nothing but the best for him.
Another chapter in a long life. We are each responsible for our choices and for the people we admit into our lives, and I have no regrets about the five years that he shared my life. In many ways, I miss him.