I've been a trucker for the last ten years but now I am back home at "Camp Chaos" and I will be working at the Fontana terminal as a safety specialist. I hope now that I'm home I'll have a lot more time for blogging!


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California Fever

 


Bear is ecstatic!

My student got off the truck today.

I’m sitting in a dock waiting for them to load me with Gatorade bound for Von’s grocery stores in Southern California, and, I noticed Bear on the upper bunk giving me a look, I guess the best way to describe it, ‘beseeching’!

“That’s a funny look you are giving me,” I said, looking at him trying to figure what was on his mind…
“Your student…” he stammered, “He isn’t here any more. What happened to him?”
“He got off the truck today”, I replied. “He’s going to get his own truck. He’s finished his training. Why?”
“Does that mean……….” He lowered his voice. “Can I ride up front now?… for ever and ever?”

“Oh, Bear!.” I answered, realizing now, it has been several weeks since I had promised I would let him up front some of the time.
My student and I have been running so hard lately that I had completely ignored Bear. I felt terrible!
“Yes, you can ride up front now. I’m sorry but there just hasn’t been any time for you to ride up front. I have a surprise for you…”
“Can I sit up front right NOW? I’m sick of sitting on this bunk day after day!”
I strapped him in the seat belt. I grabbed my camera and took a picture of him. I have not seen him this happy since the day he met all the first graders in Amber’s class.
“You can only sit up here today.” I said.
Suddenly the sunshine left and his face clouded…
“What now?” “Are you going to get another student?”
“No, no more students for awhile. I said, I have a surprise for you!”

He looked up at me, his feelings were hurt and he didn’t think I could say anything now that could make him happy. He had just gotten his hopes up that he could ride up front from now on, and I had just dashed those. So he just looked at me… his emotions flat…

“Listen, Bear.” I started. “We are on our way home to Hemet to pick up Grandma Sue and then we are going to go back to St Charles Illinois to see Amber and Suki. In fact Suki is going to ride on the truck with us for a week or so, then Amber is going to ride with us all the way back out to California!! You are going to go to school with Amber till school is out and then You, and Amber, and Suki get to be together the whole rest of the summer!”

This took awhile to sink in… Bear’s brain was processing all this information as fast as a stuffed bears brain could, and it just took awhile.
The clouds cleared and I could see the sunshine returning to his face
‘I’m going to see Amber!!!… and… Suki!!!… and… Grandma?”
“Yup, You’ll see Grandma tomorrow and she’s going to ride with us! That will be fun, won’t it!”
“I can’t wait… I can’t wait… I can’t wait…I ….” Bear stopped and looked at me, his face suddenly serious.
“There is just one thing bothering me…” he said slowly.
“What’s that, Bear” I replied looking at him intently but I had no clue what was coming.
“Why do you still call me ‘Bear’? All the kids at Amber’s school named me Billy Jack. I really like that name and you hardly ever call me by that name.
Oh, dear… I didn’t know what to say. Bear was right. I was wrong.
“You know what? Billy Jack. You are right. I am truly sorry. Shame on me. I promise from now on you will be Billy Jack. You like ‘BJ’?”
“Sure”
“Ok, BJ… forgive me?”
“Of course”
“Hey, I think they are done loading us. Let’s close the doors and head for California!!!”
“Whoopee…!” was BJ’s happy reply.
posted by Tom at 2:07 AM