Two Boys on The Bus
Two boys travelled on the bus, one was Tuesday’s boy, the other was Wednesday’s lad. Each boy carried burden’s deeply hidden away.
Tuesday’s Boy:
Tuesday’s boy spent his life in a chair with wheels that rolled him up and on the bus; while another set of wheels churned away Inside his head.
He spoke with faltered speech, while crooked fingers pointed in mayhem’s direction.
He touched his cute young aid, first on her side, then he tried stroking her short blond hair. She shied from his advances with a warning. ” Stay away, behave!”
Could he tell, was he aware, did he know, did he really care, or did he crave the need to touch, to be touched, and be held and loved?
Wednesday’s Lad:
Wednesday’s lad jumped on the bus; greeting the bus driver with a handshake and hello.
Hong, a Vietnamese lad of twenty-three sat next to me. He shook my hand, then wrapped his arms around my neck.
Hugging me he smiled and said, “Where you from?”
“Chicago” is what I said.
Hong then said, “I’m from Miami, you go to Miami?
I said, “I’ve never been there but would like to go.”
“Go to Miami, you have fun there.”
Hong then asked, “Where you go now?”
“Home” is all I said,
Hong said, “Me to.”
Hong now held his head low, followed by his sudden quiet reply, Hong went from friendly, outgoing and full of life, to sullen and forlorn.
It seemed as if Hong had retreated to a deeper, darker place… a place reserved only for him.
Hong got off the bus on Milwaukie Avenue not far from the fish market. As he prepared to leave the bus, I said, “Good-bye Hong” He nodded and with no words spoken, I could tell he was pleading for something, something I could not help with.
Two boys travelled on the bus, One, Tuesday’s boy, The other, Wednesday’s lad. Each carried burden’s deeply hidden away.
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Regis
Wednesday's lad is more troubling. I get the distinct impression that he may have been sexually abused. He probably was in the country illegally and felt that he can only connect with people in public by flattery and not genuine connection.
Throughout my life whenever I traveled on public transportation, I kept an open mind and tried to engage in conversation those near me… Except in the New York subway, where my brother warned me not to stare at anyone or talk to anyone for fear of being attacked. But I found that my brother never rode the subway. He always took taxis from the Pennsylvania station to his consulting jobs. He was just spreading the myth that the subway was dangerous.
What I found was I met many interesting people on planes, trains and vans and we shared viewpoints and histories with each other. Much better than having my nose in a book, sleeping or worse, sitting there stoically staring ahead and hoping to get out of this ugly environment as soon as possible like so many seem to. Today it is cell phones. We need to put down our cell phones and talk to one another.
Ron
Sandie