All the children act like they’re on speed, and we still have two weeks to go…somehow they know the end is near and they’re bouncing off the tables and chairs with no regard. I recently described my job to Josh like this:
Remember when we took the bus down to Lake Washington so we could watch the Blue Angels fly over the water? Remember on our return trip there was that severely handicapped man strapped in next to where we were standing on the crowded bus? Do you recall when he thought he had missed his bus stop and he started shrieking and shaking his wheelchair? Remember how nervous and unsure we felt, trapped next to this man who’s only source of communication was a keyboard strapped to his lap…and even though he managed to type out what he needed to the bus driver he was still kinda freaking out? Remember how we got off at the next stop because we felt overwhelmed? That’s how my job feels… every day there is some huge freak out, something that get’s my heart racing and my pulse amped up…kids with the communication skills of a keyboard are trying to navigate their way through a full day of kindergarten. I know the ‘bus stop’ is near and I’ll be stepping off into the luxurious, yet poor, world of the part-time worker.