Plan B

My 11 year old son Nick will be entering Middle School in the next few weeks. He's been growing so tall and changing so much that I can now see glimpses of what he will look like as a full grown man and it just blows me away. Where did my first born baby boy go?

Anyway, I was having one of those "in the car" conversations with him, asking various questions about the future, how he felt about going into Middle School etc. And at this tender age, my son still talks to me and tells me about his dreams, thoughts and feelings. One sure thing about Nick is that he loves to talk...in circles he goes...on and on about a small detail...so when I asked him the following question, he did not hesitate:

Me: Nick. So what do you want to be when you grow up?

Nick: (quickly) A race car driver.

Me: (trying not to shatter his dream) Well, you know, Nick. We all have dreams to become something really exciting and different, (I've always dreamed to be a Bet Midler type entertainer, dressed in a glitzy red gown, laying gracefully on a baby grand and singing my guts out to a sold out crowd....could still happen...you never know! Bah, ha!) And it's good to pursue those dreams, but it's always a good idea to have a back-up plan of what you want to be in case your dream of becoming a race-car diver does not happen.

Nick: Oh, yeah, well that makes sense.

Me: OK, so, what's your backup plan? What do you want to be if you can't be a race-car driver?

Nick: (quickly) An actor.