Another OOPS at the mall

Another big oops at the mall:

A young father reminded me to never assume all parents want their children to attend college.

Met a young father with a child, about 6 months old, in a baby carriage. Young child gave me eye contact, smiled and babbled happily. Father agreed he has a very smart baby. When I told him he has to start saving for a college fund, he said as he rocked in rhythm, “Naah, he’s going to be a musician.”

How could I have forgotten what I told the Third Circuit Judge in Hawaii? After reading how he lectured to  the juveniles who appeared before him, to raise their grades so they can attend college, I wrote him accusing him of being an elitist. What if some of the young people wanted to be the best waitor,  or bus driver?  Think of all the people who serve him daily from cashiers to limo drivers. He listened, agreed and thereafter he sent them out to do community service.

There are extremes, of course, like the father of a third grade student who wasn’t concerned about his daughter’s lack of interest in learning “because she’s going to be Miss Hawaii someday. All she needs to do is be a good hula dance.” The mall is a perfect place to be reeducated.

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