My two siblings and I went through several babysitters over the course of our childhood. There were good ones and bad ones- although maybe we were just good kids on some nights and bad on others. There was the one who fell asleep and didn’t answer the door, leaving me outside for an hour in my Halloween costume. She never came back. Then there was the one who let us watch 'Juno' at the tender ages of nine, 11 and 13, informing us all about the interesting, though a bit irrelevant for us, details of teen pregnancy. We followed up with several questions, bombarding her about what we saw. She came back, probably unwillingly.

I’m not sure which one inspired me to babysit, because (so far) I tend to not fall asleep on the job or show age-inappropriate films. But somewhere along the way, my interest in being a temporary caretaker was piqued and it continues to be one of my favorite and most rewarding things to do today.

Being around kids is often like being around bundles of endless motion. This doesn’t mean it’s always physical motion, though it is true that I have never witnessed a greater desire to run around in circles for hours on end than in children. It also encompasses mental motion. Their minds are constantly moving, asking questions, seeking answers to satisfy their curiosity. They want to know everything about everything and it’s exhausting but fascinating.

Their energy is contagious and I could be having the worst of days, but what does that matter when I’m so distracted by a pair of hands braiding my hair or a voice yelling for me to play a game of mancala or kick a soccer ball around. Whether I like it or not, I don’t have time to be thinking about anything but the people in front of me and what they have gotten themselves into at the moment.

I love babysitting because when the kids aren’t getting mad at you for abiding by their parents’ rules, they look at you like you’re the best and coolest person they’ve ever seen. Like you could do no wrong, even though there is so much that you could do wrong. And I get paid for this? Sign me up for more.