World

Three times I quit my job 'because of my XO career'

Apr 25, 2024

Hanoi [Vietnam], April 25: Mr. Le Kinh Thi (53 years old, lives in Phu Nhuan District, Ho Chi Minh City), currently a freelancer in many fields, recounts many sad and happy stories during his 22 years as an XO (the way his parents The parent assigned the job of taking his child to school every day, an abbreviation for "motorbike taxi" - NV ). There were 3 times he resigned, 2 times he took a break, then returned to work and the third time he actually quit.
"When I said the reason for quitting my job was because I couldn't devote myself wholeheartedly to both taking my children to school and taking care of my work at the office, no one believed me. But the truth is like that. I have 2 children, and I take them to and from school on time. , picking up, driving to different children's extra classes, then every time I have to go pick up my children but my work is not finished, my boss doesn't say anything but I can't just use the time we work together to do personal things. ", Mr. Thi stated the reason.
' huct' each potholes
Mr. Thi's "XO career" started from the day his eldest daughter entered kindergarten and then, his second child was born, following in her footsteps to school.
Why is it that for 22 years, Mr. Thi has been the main XO in the family, and it is very rare that his wife has to take care of the children instead of her husband? He replied: "My wife works in a bank, her hours are not flexible. But that is not the main reason, but because I saw that my wife rides a motorbike and handles things on the road that are not as safe as me, so I chose Be an XO for peace of mind". When the children enter elementary school, especially middle and high school, the XO father is busy because the children not only study in school, but also take many extra classes outside, from math, physics, chemistry, and biology. , English, literature... to extracurriculars.
During 22 years of picking up and dropping off his children, the 7X generation XO memorized every pothole, curve, road with damaged manhole cover, which road was often jammed at 6:30 a.m., which alley was clear at 4:30 p.m.... When The children are in high school, evening extra classes usually end at 9:30 p.m. Father and son return home sometimes at 10 p.m.
Mr. Le Kinh Thi has his own secrets to ensure his children are never late for school, such as the ability to calculate the exact time and how many minutes it takes to get from one point to another. Or when it's raining, if he puts his foot on it and the water washes away one of his sandals, he secretly hides it from his child, afraid that if he sees that scene, he will feel sorry for his father. Mr. Thi rarely makes his children wait long after school, because he is afraid that they will be in danger while waiting on the street. In particular, the child's psychology when waiting for relatives to arrive is often confused and anxious.
"On hot sunny days, when the school gate usually only has a few shady trees, the XO who comes early will get a good spot, so I have to "arrive" a few minutes early to "catch" a cool spot. Interesting stories like at the school gate there are always places like "monthly tickets" for the acquaintances. Or on the way to extra classes in the afternoon, I will buy my children a loaf of bread and a box of sticky rice so they can sit in the back of the car to eat. At the red light, the XOs are strangers but turn left and right , when I saw every XO carrying a child munching on bread, I immediately understood. Everyone smiled at each other as if they were very familiar," Mr. Thi said.
Many people think that parents who send their children to international schools will choose the school's shuttle service for convenience, avoiding the hassle of wasting time picking them up. But Mr. Tuan Nghia, living in Thu Duc City (HCMC), XO has 3 children, one in kindergarten, two in elementary school at an international school in Thao Dien Ward, Thu Duc City, among them. people think the opposite.
"The whole day the children go to school, their parents are busy working, and when they come home in the evening, there's dinner and housework, and there's no time to sit and talk to them, so I choose to take my children to school every day. "On this road, I talked to my child and taught him many practical lessons," Mr. Nghia shared. This XO never asked neighbors or acquaintances to pick up the child, no matter how busy he was, he still tried to arrange for himself or his wife to pick up the child. Fathers believe that taking their children to and from school safely is the responsibility and duty of parents and cannot be taken lightly, because with just a little negligence, parents may regret it. whole life.
XO 8X said that as soon as they saw their children from the school gate, according to their faces, parents can guess whether they are sad or happy, the stories can be based on their emotions, what are they angry at, what is wrong with them. what do you want to say? Stories of sex education and teaching children anti-abuse skills can also be confided loudly on the way to and from school.
"Once my children asked me, "Why do you say everyone on the road must wear a helmet, but the other uncle and the baby don't wear it?" So on the way home, we talked again about Road traffic safety laws . Small lessons make children remember longer," Mr. Nghia said.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper