I found a toy in my handbag and felt old

Dear Delyara, It was one of those tiny plastic animals that somehow travel everywhere with children. I pulled it out at work while looking for a pen and just stared at it for a second. Not because it was strange. Because it felt like evidence of how completely my life has merged into one ongoing system of care, duty, work, and interruption. There was a time when my bag only held my own things. Now it holds everyone. I’m not saying that with bitterness. Just with a very tired kind of awe. How did life become this full of being useful? I put the toy on my desk and carried on with my emails, but part of me stayed with that thought all afternoon.