Classic Rant #992 (June 27, 2013): Big Day

Today is just another day for you and I.

We get up, take a shower, get ready for work, proceed during the work day, end the work day, come home, eat dinner, watch some TV, and then go to sleep.

And we are like guinea pigs in a cage, because tomorrow, we are going to do it all over again.

Well, that is 100 percent true for me, at least, but for my son, today is an incredible day.

Today, he begins his first real, honest to goodness paying job of his entire life.

After three years of trying, he finally got a summer job at his old day camp.

He actually has two jobs there: as a video game expert, working the video game room, and as a bus monitor.

My son went to that camp for 10 years as a camper. He has very fond memories of those years.

But the past two years, he had hoped to work there in some capacity.

Each time, he got shot down.

He has some learning disabilities, has ADHD, and is very quiet by nature.

We often wondered if this was holding him back at the camp.

So for the past two years, he was a volunteer counselor at the camp run by the school district we live in.

He paid his dues the past two years.

It was if he had to work two years in the minor leagues before he could make it to "The Show," as they say.

He put in his time, and VOILA!, now he has a summer job at the camp that he loved to go to as a camper.

He has a lot of responsibility, especially as a bus counselor.

He must make sure that all the kids who are supposed to be on the bus are actually on the bus.

He must make sure that they are all accounted for when they leave the bus, too.

It is more responsibility than he has ever had in his life, and we think he can do a super job at it.

As a video game expert, he will man the video game room. He has a supervisor, and we told him to listen to what the supervisor says and follow his lead.

Yes, my wife and I are a bit nervous about the whole thing, but we are confident that our son can do a good job.

Look, he will be a senior in high school next year, which will be his final year in the education system, at least for the foreseeable future. He has learning difficulties, so college is not in the offing, at least not right now.

So after high school, he will go directly into the workforce. We feel with his volunteer work and this camp job, his resume is actually a pretty good one.

With the proper direction, he should be able to start his career right after high school.

And this is the first step of the long path he is going to take.

In New York State, kids like our son get a certificate that signifies that they graduated high school, not a diploma.

This is a heinous situation, because many people don't understand that the certificate is equal to a diploma. Congratulations to the state education department, which has messed up on this one big time.

Anyway, we feel that with his background, certificate or diploma, he will succeed in life after high school.

And today is the first day of the rest of his life, or at least the first day of his working life.

So we wish him well ... with our fingers crossed, of course.

Good luck, son, we know you will do well!