"Life of a Trucker" by 11-year old Chelsea.

The following is a speech that was written and presented to her class by Chelsea. Chelsea is 11 years old and her father is a trucker.

I read this story on a group I joined on Facebook and I really enjoyed it. I think it is genuine and heartfelt, and it gives such an honest and valuable insight, not only into the life of a trucker, but also into the lives of the truckers' families, who many days out of the year are left behind at home, worrying about the loved ones who are out there on the road.

I contacted Chelsea's mother, Cheryl, and asked for permission to repost the story in my blog and she was gracious enough to let me borrow it :) I haven't modified it at all, I've just split the paragraphs up a little. Everything is Chelsea's handywork! :)

Anyway, I hope you enjoy this story, I certainly did. The photos in this blog is of the Volvo that Chelsea's family owns.

"Life of a Trucker"

Miss Rolph and fellow classmates I’m here today to talk to you about the life of a truck driver. Some of you may already know my dad is a trucker. He drives a 2006 780 Volvo owned by Art and Joan McNea from Port Stanley Ontario that his boss, but his truck is leased on with Premium Transportation from Centralia Ontario which is owned by Mike Hogan.

Well to begin all these people so far that I have mention are the best people in the world and I am so grateful that my dad works for them because man the benefits me and my family get for having a dad as a trucker is so awesome. We get holidays in warm destinations like Florida, California and we get cold ones like out in BC, Alberta in the winter time but most of my travels are in the summer with dad, mom, my sisters at times and of course me.

A lot of people think truck drivers have it easy, well you know something their jobs are just as hard or even harder than most. They have deadlines, commitments, log book rules ,weather conditions, construction zones and dispatchers to deal with day in and day out. But did you know patience, honesty and knowledge are some of the virtues that are important for a successful driver/dispatcher relationship. Effective communication is vitally important and I got to say Kevin and John really do an awesome job for my dad. Oh ya there has been some upsets and disappointments but that goes with every job no matter where you are. Keep up the good work guys. It’s not so easy I’ve seen it with my own eyes and man I don’t know how my dad and all you other truckers can do it.

There are days I’ve come home and dad was there when I left for school and he’s gone when I get home I say to mom where has dad gone .I think maybe Oregon or BC or maybe Florida, but then I think when will he be home.I miss him so much when he is gone and I know mom does to that is why I love when summer is here cause we can spend every waking moment with dad on the open road. I don’t know where my dad has gone maybe Nevada, maybe Montana. When will he be home I’m not to sure but boy I miss him.I know my mom worries bout him while out there on the open road but it is only because she loves him. Whenever dad is gone every little noise I hear I think hey is that dad home nope that sound I heard was the garbage truck oh darn. Then mom’s phone rings and guess who it is, dad on the other end. He’s calling to say you need to pick me up in London for my truck is due for a safety and a service orders by Jodie the log book auditor and gal that keeps the trucks up to date for all that kinda stuff.

Well I guess it would be due he’s been gone for two weeks boy have I missed him.My sisters and myself and mom hop into the truck and head our way to London to pick dad up yes oh yes he is finally home. As soon as we get there we all go running up to dad and hug him tight as we hear him say Girls, I love you all so much. Tears rolling down our face as we are all happy he made it home from this trip safetly. Truck drivers special skills include communication skills, understanding the laws, maintaining proper licenses and endorsements, reading maps, patience with police and DOT inspectors and the ability to organize their time. It is quite apparent that truck drivers shoulder a lot of responsibility. Could you imagine having to remember things like information pertaining to loads, pick up numbers, customer addresses and phone numbers,phone numbers of brokers,contacts for breakdowns and many other things.This is all required communication between a trucker and a dispatcher. Wow too much for me to want to remember my respect for a trucker grows more and more everyday, dad how do you do it. Respect plays an important role between a driver and a dispatcher.

Lets face it, it is not easy being a truckers family, waiting for your dad to come home. I love you dad and respect you for what you do. One of my favourite sayings is,” If You Got It A Truck Brought It” my dad has a hat with that on and my mom has a t-shirt with it ,but if you really think about it if all the truckers stopped today where would we be. Would there be fresh fruit, meats or many other stuff that we rely on daily my guess is they would be few and far between. So as you all may see a life of a trucker isn’t so easy after all.

Thank you to Premium and H.A.T. Trucking for keeping my dad safe and giving him the best job ever. I love the holidays and awesome places we get to go and see and am looking so forward to many wonderful adventures this summer. So in conclusion to life as a trucker it takes a darn good family to support a trucker and a great relationship with all they work with. Life as a trucker is the hardest thing ever. I am proud of each and every trucker out there.Keep up the great work. Thank you.

Thank you Chelsea, for sharing your story with us :)