Proud moment

Many of you know how our school year started. It was, um — shitty — to put it as succinctly as I can. That said, Wilder has been making great strides in learning to pay attention, follow instructions, etc. You know, all that stuff that opens the pathways to us eventually being beaten down adults who turn to one vice or another because the world expects so much from us.

What? It's true, isn't it? OK, it's not that bad ...

Anyway, as I waited outside the school today to pick him up, a woman's voice came over the loudspeakers outside the school. Presumably she works in the office, and presumably she may be brand new, because I'm pretty sure she pushed a wrong button. And, while I appreciated being able to hear the announcements (reason to come), I'm pretty sure the six-block radius around the school might not have. Just saying, the Boulder Valley School District is not scrimping on PA systems. That shit was loud.

So anyway, she starts listing off the names of kids who got "PAWS" today. That stands for something that has to do with good behavior. For me, it would be "Please Answer Without Sarcasm," a skill I never learned. For the little ones, it's something else.

Anyway, as I stood there listening, I dared to hope that I would hear my kiddo's name announced. Lucky for me, he doesn't have a name like Grayson or Jayson or Braden or Aidan or any of those names that seem so popular amongst little boys these days.

And, then, it happened ...

"blah blah blah Wilder, from Ms. Z's class, blah blah blah ..."

I swear the damn widest smile spread over my face. There were times at the beginning of the school year that, had you told me that THAT would have happened, I would have laughed, then cried, then found the nearest route to my refrigerator.

But it did. And I was so, so proud. Damn, kid, you done good.

And then there was ice cream. The end.