The taxi driver job I never applied for

I used to think the baby years were the hardest part of parenting. The sleepless nights, the constant touching, the never-ending snacks and questions and sticky hands.

But at least when they were little, they thought I was magic...Now I live with teenagers and apparently, I am just a very underpaid taxi driver.

Every afternoon it begins.
“Mum, can you take me to training?”
“Mum, can you drop me at Jess’s?”
“Mum, I forgot I have to be at school early tomorrow.”
“Mum, can you pick me up later?”

No one ever asks how my day was, they just assume the taxi service is operating as usual.

Some days I spend more time in the car than I do inside my own house, I know every shortcut through our suburb, every pothole in the school parking lot, and exactly how long it takes to get from the oval to the shops at 4:30pm traffic.

What I love though is that when they get in the car after school, they still sit in the front seat, they still tell me random things about their day.. it's not in a “sit down and talk about your feelings” kind of way.

More like:
“Did you know Mr Thompson fell off his chair today?”
“Someone brought a snake to school.”
“I think my maths teacher secretly hates us.”

It all comes out in these weird little drive-by conversations between traffic lights And sometimes, when they think I’m not paying attention, they’ll play me a song they like, or ask what music I listened to when I was their age. They feel comfortable to complain about a friend and even when I am really lucky they will run into the shops with me instead of sitting in the car scrolling.
The car has become this strange little bubble where they’re still my kids for a few minutes.
No friends watching.
No phones in their hands (well… sometimes).
No pretending to be cooler than they are.

.... its just us.

The other night after I dropped one of them off at training, they jumped out and said:
“Thanks mum.” It was just that, two words and honestly, it felt like winning the lottery.

So, I might run the busiest unpaid taxi service in town.

But if the price of hearing little pieces of their world is a few extra trips around town…

I guess I’ll keep the engine running. 🚗

- Anonymous, QLD