By Lee Scott
My friend Cindy called me one day and asked if I wanted to go on a field trip.
Even before she finished speaking, my mind started to think about the dreaded field trips of my youth. I recalled the old school buses with no air-conditioning, the nuns in sneakers (a foreign look for us students) and endless straight lines.
Then there were those places where the only way to get a drink of water was a public water fountain, usually one with little water pressure. Each child would suck on the water spigot to get a drink. A practice that reduced me to either not getting a drink of water or wiping off the faucet with my shirt.
There were also the bathroom breaks which required us standing in straight lines alphabetically. Those of us with names at the end of the alphabet always suffered.
Then I recalled the last field trip with my thirteen-year-old daughter’s class.
On the way to the school bus, she spent the entire time telling me what not to do.
“Mom, please do not embarrass me,” was the theme. “Keep your voice down.” “Do not single me out.” “Act like you don’t know me.”
I took it all like a trooper since I would not allow my own mother to attend any of my field trips.
Despite this, as Cindy finished telling me about the field trip, I decided it was worth the attempt.
After all it had been years and I like to challenge myself and put bad memories behind me.
There would be 17 of us attending the Savannah Historic House and Garden Tour (a fundraiser) and we would be going in five cars. It would be an all-day event since we would be driving to Savannah, touring the homes, and then going out to a late lunch.
Despite my fears, it turned out to be a perfect field trip.
Cindy had worked in the public-school system for years and had the organizational skills needed to get the group where we needed to be. She had addresses, the map, and the tickets.
I’m not sure if she ordered the weather too, but it was a perfect day to walk around Savannah.
The 17 women all chatted with one another, and there was no sense of favoritism with the leader.
At no time did she tell us to be silent and line up alphabetically. She also incorporated bathroom breaks into the day, one of which included walking through a beautiful park that had clean bathrooms and clean water fountains.
And finally, although Cindy did have on sneakers, she was not wearing a nun’s habit.
Good job, Cindy!
Time for another field trip!
