The ability to live and take care of yourself on your own takes huge responsibility, which Lennie does not have without George. Lennie has a fair amount of trouble remembering important things. In fact it’s even hard for him to keep track and remember his own thoughts. George had to keep Lennie’s work card for him so he didn’t lose it. This proves that he is unable to keep track of his own things and can’t be responsible for himself. George also told Lennie that if he got into any trouble he had to go back to the river bank and hide to wait for George. This shows that Lennie can’t make his own decisions and needs a caretaker to tell him what to do in the worst case scenario. Lennie is not the sharpest tool in the shed and he depends on George in every aspect of his life.