Sunday, January 31, 2010

Just a Really Nice Kid!

Until recently the majority  of my cab driving career was spent on the day shift.The company I was with at that time had a lot of school runs.We would transport kid's to and from the many schools in the area.This was generally do to a child being banned from the school bus for bad behavior, a child with special needs, or just children that were not yet on a school bus route.
One child who fell into the latter category,was an eleven year old boy named Brad.
Brad and I hit it off from the beginning,my children were in the same age range,and I have always gotten along well with kid's.Probably due in part because I am just a big kid at heart.
Soon Brad's parents were requesting of the cab company that I pick-up  him up on a regular basis.
Brad was one of the nicest kid's  that I had ever met.He was an incredibly well mannered and confident boy.
We would often talk about how things were going for him at school,and always shared a laugh.I gave him a free ride on his 12th.Birthday which he thought was just terrific.
I continued to take Brad to school right through his high school years,I was literally watching this lad grow up.
I often told him what a good kid he was,telling him one time "that his parents must be pretty special,because they had done a heck of a good job raising him and his two brother's."
Brad's Mom was a secretary and his Dad was a trucker,oddly enough the same fields of work that my former wife and I had once been in.

Brad graduated high-school and I didn't see much of him after that.The last time I saw him was about five years ago,he was in his early twenties,and was trying to decide on a career in either  the military or law enforcement.
It came as no surprise that he had become a fine well rounded young man.Who would no doubt be an asset not only to his future employer,but more importantly to the community as well.