A Trucker’s Child

September is here and summer is winding down. School will be starting soon, and all the kiddos will be back in class. I don’t have kids of my own, but I am the child of trucking parents, so I know the unique lifestyle a trucker’s child experiences. We always said, it’s not about the quantity of time we get to be together, but it’s the quality. Maybe mom or dad couldn’t make it to school functions or sports games, but we never felt neglected or unloved. Personally, I loved bragging about my trucking parents and getting to travel the country while the other kids never left their home town. But, it can be challenging, as well. Oftentimes, birthdays and holidays were often skipped or celebrated on another date to accommodate the schedule of the truck. This poem is for those of you who have kids at home, who are heading back to school, while you’re heading out to who-knows-where in a truck. They’ll be describing their summer road trips in the shotgun seat, while you’re staring at their pictures on the dash, wishing you could be there with them. Maybe you’ll share this one with your kids – maybe they will even want to bring a copy to school and share it with their friends. After all, if they’re anything like me, they are proud to be a long-haul trucker’s kid.

A TRUCKER’S CHILD
By Trevor Hardwick

I have rolled a thousand highways,
I will roll a thousand more.
I have rolled so many countless miles,
From the mountains to the shore.

I have seen a lot of sunsets,
I have seen the starry skies.
I have seen the way the sun creeps in,
And burns me in the eyes.

But nothing seems to hold me,
Or makes me feel alive.
Like seeing you on those front steps,
When I pull into the drive.

When I aim for that horizon,
And I chase the painted lines.
I leave you here for days or weeks,
And I wish we had more time.

But I think about you always,
And I know it seems unfair.
While other families spend more time,
I’m always gone somewhere.

I keep your pictures on my dash,
And some above the door.
And every time that I get home,
You’ve grown a little more.

School is back in session soon,
You’ll reunite with friends.
I’d love to take you on the road,
Before the summer ends.

So when the teacher asks you,
How was your summer spent?
You can tell them all about,
The places that we went.

I know it isn’t easy,
Since I’m gone most of the time.
But if it were up to me,
We’d find some trees to climb.

But when I come back home,
And I see your face beguiled.
I hope it means you’re proud to be,
A long-haul trucker’s child.