And so it begins

Who are you?

A question I find it difficult to answer. My name is insufficient; a partial answer at best. My occupation is better: I am an engineer. Of course I am also a fencer, archer, singer, modeler, gamer, medic... This question is one I am still trying to answer.

What do you want?

I want to see Earthrise. I want people to care about me as much as I care about them. I want children, someday, and to be a good parent to them. I want to swim with dolphins. I want many other things, too. This isn't a question that can be fully answered, but those are some of the biggest things. Some of the things I want I don't even like admitting to myself.

Why are you here?

Well, right now I'm at work, because they pay me. But that's dodging the question. I have no idea why I'm here. Am I part of some unbelievably large joke? A battery for a giant computer? A self-directing intelligence interacting freely with other such intelligences for no grand reason at all? I find the last the most frightening.

Where are you going?

Insane. Well, yes, but "wherever I feel that I am most needed" is a better answer. Where am I most needed, then? I wish I knew.

Who do you serve, and who do you trust?

I serve the Constitution of the United States of America, which is not the same as the government. I serve myself. I serve my friends and family. I trust... very little. I would like to trust a lot of people, but trust to me also means reliance. I feel that I have very few people I can rely on, and they are all far away.