My son’s first job!

I answered the phone.  A familiar voice said, “Guess who got hired?”  And I was so happy I could barely contain myself.  I actually refrained from saying, “I don’t know, who???”

My oldest son Josh had his first interview for a job…. and was offered a position for the summer at our nearby amusement park!

He will be on “sweeps,” which means he’ll be, well, sweeping.  He’ll start out at the kiddie ride section and move around the park as the summer progresses.

We were skeptical about the interview today.  You see, at his mock interview session last week (with the non-profit organization AHEDD), he stopped and refused to cooperate half way through the session.  (I was glad  that his mentors insisted that he think about whether he was serious about job searching, and that services would be suspended until he thought about this long and hard and committed to the process. I believe he needs more people like this in his life!) We did a mock interview this morning. He did pretty well.

He is so excited.  He’s glad he showered, brushed his teeth, clipped his nails, and wore a coat & tie today.  His self-esteem has gone up a few hundred notches.  He keeps going over the company info and has also calculated many times how much he could make in a week.  He’s planning his climb up the corporate ladder and how he’s going to get through college.

As for me, I don’t know what his future holds at the park.  I just am happy that he looked and smelled nice.  I am excited that, when the summer gets scorching hot, the pavement gets sticky, and the work gets to be tedious,  the paychecks will be the best reinforcer ever.

I’m excited about another things, too: his future supervisor told my husband that he has several employees on the autism spectrum and that they are his best employees!

Sure, the work isn’t glamorous, but the gifts and strengths of the individuals are recognized.  Their autism is seen as an asset, not a deficit.

A landmark day: my oldest kid is going to be a member of the workforce, working toward becoming a responsible, successful taxpayer.  Take that, Mr. Therapist.

Wow, I feel old. 🙂