So here I was riding the bus home. There’s an African (as in born and raised in Africa, having immigrated to Canadia) woman at the front of the bus with her two kids, a young girl in a stroller and a young boy not in the stroller. Both are incredibly young, the older boy being kindergarten age at absolute maximum.
The two kids were yattering back and forth about I don’t know what, whatever the primitive minds of tiny children feel is important to their day to day activities. I paid them no heed, finding it more productive to stare out the window and mentally run over marksman PvP builds (YES I DO THIS SHUT UP).
Then the darndest thing happened! They got louder! Well, not so much louder as more intense and saying the same thing over and over again.
The little girl says: “Your are the daddy!”
The little boy says: “No I’m not!”
“Yes, your are the daddy!”
“No! No I’m not!”
“Yourrr arrre the daddy!”
“No, I’m not the daddy!”
“Yes, yourrrr arrrre the daddy!”
“NO! I’M! NOT! The daddy!”
This continued, each participant of this highly odd argument increasing in volume with every exchange. Other passengers on the boss were grinning, tittering, giving each other looks with smiles attached. Oh those darn kids!
Eventually the mother interrupts by asking “Why don’t you want to be the daddy?”
A good ten seconds go by. Finally, the boy turns to his mother, a mask of utter anguish and rage on his face, tears tracing paths down a face that shouldn’t even be capable of expressing sorrow yet.
“Because daddy leave and make mommy cry!” the boy finally spat back.
Dead silence was the only sound heard for the remainder of the bus trip.
Sharp does of reality. My parents have been married over 20 years and the older I get the more I appreciate them. Both for putting up with all my crazy brothers and each other for so long.
I have a brother who did that.. to two women.
He doesn’t deserve a moment of his children’s time, not anymore.
Ouch. This is why people make me want to punch them in the face (the adults, I mean). What a messed up world we live in.
I second Oracle’s thoughts. So grateful for my parents. (Just had their 35th anniversary.)
A very touching story. It is sometimes amazing what kids know, and understand at an early age.
Yes, we in RTC concur: The RIAA will need to create a new “Quadruple Chromium Award” or something like that to honor the musical greatness of David MiviCscge.aOB’s new musical stage name is Slappy Mack.This new musical stage name has to do with the way he slaps his jazz guitar while he simulates playing it.
From the mouths of babes….
Judging by this post, and the last one you posted involving bus rides (see: Nobody Gives a Shit)….
I’d have to say riding a bus can be a reality check for some people.
When I’m driving my car, I am alone, listening to my music, driving along. Although I’ve never taken a bus, I imagine a lot of things that you’d rather not experience are forced upon you, due to close proximity of other people.
I can only imagine what it would be like. Having 5 people talking loudly on their cell phones, two people a few rows back yelling at each other, kids bouncing around, old people with the aroma of spoiled cheese…
Your resilliance and stamina are remarkably high. I would have to /cast bubble on myself to get through that on a daily basis (most likely in the form of an iPod).
I think that if everyone rode the bus every day, we’d all be a lot more tolerant. At least where I am, it’s a broad cross-section of people and, ya know, bus riders are just real folks trying to live their lives and get where they’re going. And you’re just one of those folks, rather than being the center of your universe sequestered in your car going 5mph on the Beltway.
I will say that ipod + book + sunglasses makes effective armor some days, though.
People still want to be the centre of the universe when they’re on the bus… or at least the people in my neighbourhood do.
When the bus is five mintues late because of snow, someone on the route has to make a big deal about it. And then when the bus actually shows up on time, they complain that it’s “early”.
When there’s a new driver and he’s unfamiliar with the route, people would rather yell at them than take the time to help them out. (Pro tip: If you help them out, you actually get home sooner!)
There are only two men (and maybe one woman?) on my route that will actually give up their seat for a pregnant woman.
Now, I’m sure most of those people are reasonably decent when you get to know them. But for some reason, people have a hard time showing others a certain level of courtesy. Even on the bus.
This is because your/our neighbourhood is a breeding ground for yuppies!
@ Chawa
Quite true. Our ‘hood is full of young, unaware, self-centred pricks. Although the two people who mouth off to the bus driver the most are middle aged women. They are shockingly rude.
Tammy Wynnette song: “I don’t wanna play house, it makes my mommy cry… cuz when she played house, my daddy said, ‘goodbye.’ “
This is exactly why to this day, I think our children would be better off dropped in a jungle with nothing but a ration and a k-bar knife. They would still get a better raising there then with parents of our or the next generation. Don’t mind me though, I’m going to go have a kid and push all my emotional baggage on him which he/she is completely unrelated with.
/rant off, that seriously is a downer. Makes me feel blessed that my parents decided to be grown adults in the 70s.
Wow. When we’re in our own little worlds, we forget what people can do to each other. Kids pick up on everything.
That’s 2 bus stories I read written by you, both leaving me felling very disappointed with people.
😦
D:
That makes me sad. I try not to cry in front of my son because his father left me alone to raise him, but sometimes it is so hard to pull it all together, keeping up the front that everything is okay. He just turned 2. His dad actually made it over for his birthday the other day and it broke my heart the absolute joy that was in my sons face when he saw his daddy who has made NO effort since the split 8 months ago. Who has seen his son 5 times, most of which I’ve pushed and pushed to happen actually driving him to and from the agreed upon location and sitting there while they played.
The single group of people I respect above all others are single mothers. You ladies have to be so incredibly strong to continue doing what you do. My heart goes out to all of you whose hearts have been ravaged by a man with no sense of loyalty.
A damn shame.
It has been my experience that while many times you hear the excuse from a stray Dad or Mother that “the kids drove us apart,” it is in fact the kids that are the glue that hold us all together.
Truly a damn shame more people don’t realize it and sacrifice their selfishness for their family.
Sad commentary on todays society.
[…] ask that of anyone… The stuff Arioch (awesome series), Euripedes (Maging and the saddest story for a Monday ever) and many more have been writing lately is of such high quality, that I could never ask you to […]
O_O
“Other passengers on the boss were grinning, tittering, giving each other looks with smiles attached.”
passengers on a boss? I know meant bus, but it made me chuckle…