Didn't See It Coming...

Chaperone. The word that once made me wince as a young hooligan. The parent of another child who came to both embarrass their own child and force foreign disciplinary practices on me for the duration of the field trip. I was recently asked to be one for my old high school's drama competition over this past weekend. I had no real disciplinary power, which is for the best, as some of the students are a mere three years younger than me and have been good friends of mine for longer than the gap between us.

My only REAL job over the weekend was the "Night Watchman" at the hotel. I was to make sure that none of the students were wandering past curfew (especially into rooms of the opposite gender). This was, as my past principle and other authoritative figures that once would discipline me for wandering school halls, quite ironic. To think that I, once the most infamous rule-bender in the entire school, could now be called upon to help enforce the rules made me laugh in my heart throughout the entire trip.

I was, however, also very flattered. Its the classic "bad guy gone good" story, but very watered down and "Disney-fied", if you will. They knew that I knew the rules, because in order to be the master of loopholes, you have to know where they are. In fact, I had taught most of the kids on the trip the tricks that they had tried to use on me. It's a good feeling. To be called upon for what you were once frowned upon for.

As you may have guessed, I let the power go to my head. Why shouldn't I have? It was a weekend deal. Every once in a while, it's good to let yourself be the king of the world. The entire trip was very relaxed, because I was there, and having no children or really any paycheck on the line, I could interact with the kids in a way that a parent or teacher could. I would joke and talk with them on an almost equal level, while maintaining the respect of someone who had a semblance of authority.

So, in a nutshell: Fun trip. Fun people. Funny play. Good boost to self-confidence.