I have been tired

Sitting in the passenger's seat of my dad’s friends beat up Jeep 

Tired of waiting to arrive at the beach

Tired of being the one that picks the shortest straw

Tired of being demoted to driving with my parents weird hippie friends

It's been six hours

I'm tired of the smell of tobacco 

I'm tired of The sound of steely dan's greatest hits awkwardly bouncing out of the broken speaker and reverberating around the hard steel walls of the car

I'm tired of asking “how much longer?” 

The uncomfortable leather seats provide me with fleeting five minute naps 

Soon to be ended abruptly by big joe launching into another story about his days in the band

I stop trying to nap 

Giving up on the rough leather seatbelts ability to serve as a silk pillowcase

And i listen 

I listen to his folklore 

I listen to his loud raspy laugh

I listen to his lessons and warnings

I listen to how deeply he cares about me, even though I am only the daughter of his weird hippie friend