Surprises
I was making my way around my route this morning when I picked up a young girl waiting with her mother at a bus stop. She was somewhere between the age of 12-15. It's hard to tell these days, what with all the hormones and such, just how old a youngster is. But since she was headed to the middle school across town it's safe to assume she was within that age range.
Her mother bid her farewell, instructing her not to get off the bus until she gets to school. At first I took this to mean that she had trouble with the girl skipping school. But as the bus ride progressed I realized it was because of another reason.
The girl obviously had some sort of social/mental deficiency that became quite noticeable as the bus put distance between the girl and her mother. The girl started "rocking" in her seat, at first slowly and subtly but as more people boarded the bus it became more fast paced and pronounced. I can only assume she had some sort of anxiety building within her and the rocking was how she coped. I felt a ton of empathy for her, a young girl alone on a city bus with all those strangers.
I noticed about halfway through town that she had begun sucking her thumb and tugging on one of her earlobes with her free hand. When she was in this mode she wasn't rocking any longer. But I noticed that the farther we went away from her comfort zone the more she alternated between the rocking and the thumb sucking/ear pulling. It was sad and distressing to observe.
At one point I heard two young women, 18-20 yr olds I'd guess, sniggering in the back and when I looked up in my passenger mirror I saw them pointing at the young girl and whispering between one another. They caught my eye in the mirror and immediately looked away. I made sure to give them a proper "stink-eye" before they were able to look away.
It's heartbreaking to think that there are children beyond the toddling age that are still sucking their thumbs for comfort. But in today's society it seems that there really shouldn't be any surprises like that anymore. In an age of seen it, done it and got the shirt to prove it... you'd think there were nothing left to shocked about. But seeing this young girl, obviously doing her best to deal with her anxieties in a public setting while having no adult supervision or guidance was just plain shocking.
I can't imagine being that girl. And I can't imagine being that mother who willingly puts the girl alone on a city bus full of only who knows what kind of people, and just says "don't get off until you get to school". I mean, no "I love you, have a really great day baby girl"... just orders.
*sigh*
Oh a lighter note, I did manage a fun little jab with a passenger during my evening shift today. I had went down the river and was heading back into Charleston when I stopped to pick up a few customers waiting patiently for the bus to arrive. One of them had a bicycle. One of the best features for busy commuters riding our buses is the collapsible bike rack on the front of the bus. With the simple pull of a lever the bike rack unfolds to accommodate two bicycles at any one time.
The gentleman with the bike loaded it and secured it, double checking things before boarding the bus. As he paid his fare I kind of raised up and leaned forward just to triple check his bike. He caught me checking and said "it should be good."
"Oh I sure hope so, I really don't want to run over another one today." I quipped.
"Oh...oh (with a look of horror in his eyes)... maybe I better check it then. Are you serious....? You ran over one today?" He was shocked and seriously concerned for the welfare of his bicycle. The look on his face was priceless. Until he looked at me again and saw my sh*t eating grin.
"You got me, bus driver.I thought, 'oh whoa maybe I better wait for another bus'. You're a funny lady." he said before walking back to a seat, laughing the whole way.
That exchange made my day. Even when I'm dead tired, beat down, and fed up... I can still manage to get a laugh in here and there.
Her mother bid her farewell, instructing her not to get off the bus until she gets to school. At first I took this to mean that she had trouble with the girl skipping school. But as the bus ride progressed I realized it was because of another reason.
The girl obviously had some sort of social/mental deficiency that became quite noticeable as the bus put distance between the girl and her mother. The girl started "rocking" in her seat, at first slowly and subtly but as more people boarded the bus it became more fast paced and pronounced. I can only assume she had some sort of anxiety building within her and the rocking was how she coped. I felt a ton of empathy for her, a young girl alone on a city bus with all those strangers.
I noticed about halfway through town that she had begun sucking her thumb and tugging on one of her earlobes with her free hand. When she was in this mode she wasn't rocking any longer. But I noticed that the farther we went away from her comfort zone the more she alternated between the rocking and the thumb sucking/ear pulling. It was sad and distressing to observe.
At one point I heard two young women, 18-20 yr olds I'd guess, sniggering in the back and when I looked up in my passenger mirror I saw them pointing at the young girl and whispering between one another. They caught my eye in the mirror and immediately looked away. I made sure to give them a proper "stink-eye" before they were able to look away.
It's heartbreaking to think that there are children beyond the toddling age that are still sucking their thumbs for comfort. But in today's society it seems that there really shouldn't be any surprises like that anymore. In an age of seen it, done it and got the shirt to prove it... you'd think there were nothing left to shocked about. But seeing this young girl, obviously doing her best to deal with her anxieties in a public setting while having no adult supervision or guidance was just plain shocking.
I can't imagine being that girl. And I can't imagine being that mother who willingly puts the girl alone on a city bus full of only who knows what kind of people, and just says "don't get off until you get to school". I mean, no "I love you, have a really great day baby girl"... just orders.
*sigh*
Oh a lighter note, I did manage a fun little jab with a passenger during my evening shift today. I had went down the river and was heading back into Charleston when I stopped to pick up a few customers waiting patiently for the bus to arrive. One of them had a bicycle. One of the best features for busy commuters riding our buses is the collapsible bike rack on the front of the bus. With the simple pull of a lever the bike rack unfolds to accommodate two bicycles at any one time.
The gentleman with the bike loaded it and secured it, double checking things before boarding the bus. As he paid his fare I kind of raised up and leaned forward just to triple check his bike. He caught me checking and said "it should be good."
"Oh I sure hope so, I really don't want to run over another one today." I quipped.
"Oh...oh (with a look of horror in his eyes)... maybe I better check it then. Are you serious....? You ran over one today?" He was shocked and seriously concerned for the welfare of his bicycle. The look on his face was priceless. Until he looked at me again and saw my sh*t eating grin.
"You got me, bus driver.I thought, 'oh whoa maybe I better wait for another bus'. You're a funny lady." he said before walking back to a seat, laughing the whole way.
That exchange made my day. Even when I'm dead tired, beat down, and fed up... I can still manage to get a laugh in here and there.
Comments
You did the right thing by giving them the "stink-eye". They needed to know their behavior is not appropriate.
Perhaps if more of us object either vocally or with a look we can stop the crazy spiral of these kids bullying and poking fun at others. They need to know it only makes them look small and petty, and hurts the individual being bullied beyond comprehension.