OT: Get back to work!

[Gurantsu]

After six years of being a stay at home dad, or Mr. Mom if you prefer, I'm finally heading back out into the full time work force.

I left my last job in IT to come home and be with my kids after my son got sick. It was tough, but wonderful to see him get healthier, and to be there for so much of my kids lives. Just this morning we got them on the bus for their first day of school this year, Jackson to first grade and Olivia to fourth. As much as I'm excited to get back to work, it's now nearing the time I would normally pick Jack up and we would have lunch together, and I can tell that for a while I'm going to miss it terribly.

As for me, being out of the computer world for so long has put me well behind the eight ball (and part-time Gamestop does not count as the computer world! ), I had trouble finding any work in that field. However, I have taken a position as a teachers assistant at a school for special needs kids. It won't be easy work, but nonetheless I think I'll enjoy it. I can't actually start until the rest of my clearances come in from the state, but once they do I'm off and running.

It certainly can be a scary time, but reading this forum over the years has shown me that I'm not alone in changes like this, and I'm glad to have the company. Certainly we all have our differences now and then, but this forum has been a community that is respectful and mature, and the fact that it is mostly self policing makes it even more special (and makes me grimace when other forums drop the hammer at the drop of a hat).

Onward and upward!

[TCrouch]

Congratulations, Grant!

And for working with special needs kids, kudos. As some here know, my youngest son has Autism and is on the "more severe" side of the spectrum (8 and doesn't talk, isn't toilet trained, etc). Going to his class periodically is eye-opening. Dealing with one special needs child feels like a lot sometimes. Dealing with 8 or 10 takes a special kind of person, so what you're doing is very appreciated.

[ScoopBrady]

Congratulations, Grant! I spent 7 years working with children with special needs and it is very rewarding. You'll love it.

[pk500]

You're a good man, Grant. Good luck with your new work with kids.

[Gurantsu]

I'm not sure what kids will be in my class until I get in there, but I do know that the school educates some with autism, along with some who have had just rotten lives, from abuse, drugs, and who knows what else. I've been warned to expect to be bitten, hit, spit on, and have the occasional chair thrown at me.

Yet even though they gave me these warnings, every one of the people who gave them has worked with these kids for years, and not one of them has ever said anything bad about the kids, in fact they love them. They are a challenge, they will test you daily, they will act out in ways that may shock you, but they are deep down good kids. Dealt crappy hands many times, but good kids if you can find it. I was always amazed at the way my wife (who works in a similar field) would fight for a kid, when others were ready to give up on them.

I remember a conversation with my wife long ago, when she asked how I survived my, rather crappy, childhood. I told her that it's just about finding the good people. There are members of my immediate family I haven't talked to in over a decade, and other extended family and friends who are inspirations and role models. I can only hope that I can be one of these good people to a kid who needs one.

Thanks for your thoughts!

[sportdan30]

Grant, congratulations! That's really awesome. The lives you're going to touch will be more fulfilling than anything you've ever done, besides of course caring for your family. Such a rewarding job that will be filled with many challenges. But, when you look back at your life, you'll know you made a difference. Can you tell I'm envious???

Good luck!

[rhymes450]

Congratulations on your new job. It sounds as if it might be very challenging but also very rewarding. Just from your posts on this thread, I get the impression that you'll do an excellent job. Best of luck!

[Brando70]

Good for you, Grant. You will be making an incredible difference in those kids' lives.

[Gurantsu]

Today was my first actual day of work, as I had to wait for my clearances to come in. All I can say is...



The best word to describe it is intense. Everyone kept asking if I'd be back for a second day!

Still, as hard as it was, the flashes of time where you see that the kids are just regular kids, but with more problems in their young lives, makes it seem worth while. Even though statistically, success rates are incredibly low. Although as my wife told me, it all depends on what you deem as success.

Spit? Yup. Thrown chair? Oh yeah. Going back tomorrow? Absolutely.

[Gurantsu]

I just wanted to follow up this thread now that it's been about a month since I've started my new job.

I think that if you described it in detail to me before I went there I would have turned it down. And thank goodness no one did! Even though I do miss working in IT (my last employer has even expressed an interest in hiring me back), even though every day is intense, so far I haven't had one day where in the morning I didn't want to go to work.

All of my co-workers are absolutely awesome. The things they go through to try to help and teach these kids (and many schools of this type tend to bypass the academics) still amazes me. We have constant meetings to try to see how we can make things better and try to get these guys back to a regular school environment. Even more amazing to me is the fact that I enjoy being there.

Today was our first school rally of the year, where all of the kids get to go to the auditorium and have some other fun activities as long as they have met their goals. It was going to be my first one, but I missed it because myself and two others were in my room, while one of our guys had a blowout and trashed it. Eventually he did calm down, and cleaned up everything (its our policy that if you wreck the place, you fix it!), and later at lunch him and I were talking about his pet hamster and my dog. Even though some of the behaviors I've seen would shock most people, I can honestly say there isn't a kid there that I don't like. I certainly don't like the way they act many times, but trying to get them to make the right decisions is what it's all about. And most of the time they do, eventually. And when they do, it's amazing to see that most of them accept their inevitable loss of privileges, and they know what they did was wrong.

Anyway, I just wanted to say that even though it is the most challenging job I have ever had, in a field I never intended to go into, I really enjoy it. I must be an adrenalin junkie!

[sportdan30]

That's awesome to hear. Happy to hear you're sticking with it and enjoying it for that matter. Sounds like you have already made some differences in these kids lives. While my job can tend to be like Groundhog Day now and then, I'm sure you have quite a few stories and accomplishments that you'll remember forever.

[Gurantsu]

Today we had an in-service, and during it we watched a documentary called "Hold Me Tight, Let Me Go" about a school in England that has kids with similar problems as ours. It was interesting to see how they handled things as compared to the way we do; we had a really good discussion afterwards and while there were some things we felt were better for us there were still things we learned and hope to implement. They are however a residential facility, where our kids are brought to school each day.

Anyway, if you can ever see the whole thing it is really good, but here is a clip for you from YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6liIQfbQ4s