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Due to the heavy snowfall that morning, almost
everyone at the bus stop had rushed inside to avoid
the cold, making the bus more crowded than ever.
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels
As Timmy looked through the rearview mirror, he
could see how uncomfortable it had been for some
passengers. Their bodies were brushing against
each other, and the ones who didn't get a seat
were making a stern face at those who had.
Timmy drove a little faster despite the thick snow
on the roads to save the passengers from the
discomfort of riding inconveniently, and after 20
minutes, he arrived at his first stop for the day.
As a few passengers disembarked, the bus, while
still crowded, appeared to have more space. Timmy
breathed a sigh of relief and continued on his way
to the next stop of the day, hoping to arrive sooner.
However, he was startled to hear the passengers
arguing.
"I don't know what's wrong with the kids these
days! How can they be so rude?" he heard a man
complain loudly.
Timmy immediately looked in the rearview mirror,
but because there were so many passengers, he
couldn't figure out who had expressed their
displeasure.
He initially ignored the complaint, thinking it was
just a passing murmur caused by overcrowding,
and continued driving. But just then, he heard
another voice, this time a woman's. "I wonder how
his mother raised him. Can't he see that the poor
lady is in trouble? She's been standing for so long!"
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels
At this point, when Timmy looked in the mirror, he
noticed a woman, probably in her late twenties,
standing beside an older woman and casting a
stern look at a window seat. Timmy couldn't see
who she was looking at because his gaze was
fixed on the road.
However, when he looked in the mirror again, he
noticed she was yelling at Jonathan, the 10-year-old
boy who was a frequent passenger on his bus.
Jonathan sat quietly in his seat, his eyes wide
open, staring intently at those mocking him. But the
boy didn't utter a single word, which irritated the
passengers even more.
"What's wrong with you, boy?" the woman spoke up
again. "Look at those big eyes just staring at us!
Don't you have basic manners?"
"I know, right," a man added. "I hate that these kids
don't even have sympathy for the older people.
What a mannerless child! This old woman has been
standing here for so long but just look at that
unsympathetic brat!"
"You're absolutely right!" a man next to him added.
"These days, parents give their children far too
much freedom and don't even teach them how to
behave with the elderly."
"Well," the older woman finally spoke up. "I really
feel sorry for the young children. I don't mind
standing here, but I'm struck by how he's listening
to everything we're saying to him while acting as if
he doesn't understand anything. It's really
unfortunate."
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels
"It's his parents' fault, ma'am," the woman who had
previously chastised Jonathan added. "If I were his
mother, I would teach him right away how to treat
the elderly! What a shameless kid!"
As Timmy drove further, these complaints went on
and on. Some mocked Jonathan for being rude,
while others questioned his upbringing. But despite
the insults, the young boy didn't utter a word. He
was sitting silently in his seat, intimidated by the
passengers and staring at them.
At one point, Timmy got so fed up with the voice of
the passengers ridiculing the young boy that he had
to pull the brakes and stop abruptly. As the vehicle
stopped, it experienced a sudden jerk, which
temporarily halted the passengers' complaints and
directed them at Timmy.
"What's wrong with you?" a man lashed out at him.
"Do you want to kill all of us? Can't you drive
properly?"
"It's such a weird day! I swear!" A woman added.
"First of all, the bus is crowded like anything and
then all of this…."
"But it's not my fault," Timmy interrupted, restarting
the bus. "You've been arguing so loudly that I can't
concentrate on driving. And why are you people
yelling at that little boy to take a seat? Perhaps you
could be a little more sympathetic to him."
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels
"You don't have to defend him for his
wrongdoings," the older woman continued.
"Because of people like you, he'll just keep being
arrogant the way he is."
"But, ma'am..."
The older woman cut Timmy off before he could
finish. "Keep your eyes on the road. At the very
least, learn how to do your job properly."
"I'm doing my duty, ma'am," Timmy shot back at
her. "Perhaps you could do yours as well! You can't
pass judgment on the boy if you don't know his
entire story."
The older woman had lost her cool at this point.
"I'll tell you what, stop the bus right now! I'll leave if
this boy doesn't get off the bus."
Timmy didn't say anything in response to the older
woman's complaint. He continued driving until the
second stop arrived, at which he slowly rose from
his seat, removed a set of crutches from the
passenger bin, and proceeded to Jonathan's seat.
He smiled at the boy and motioned to him that he
had arrived at his stop in sign language. Jonathan
returned his smile and gestured a thank you. He
then exited the bus using the crutches.
Timmy turned to the older woman after the boy had
left and told her the entire story.
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Unsplash
"That boy is mute and limps, ma'am. His mother is
a single parent. The boy travels in my bus almost
every day. I know him well."
After Timmy told the truth about the boy, all the
passengers fell silent. "Oh, dear!" the older woman
gasped. "I'm so sorry. I had no idea that boy was
mute. Do you know where his mother lives?" she
asked Timmy. "I would like to apologize to her."
"Sure, ma'am. And next time, please don't judge
someone just like that. I hope others understand
this too," Timmy said as he handed the woman a
note which contained Jonathan's address.
The older woman, whose name was Felicia Smith,
visited Jonathan and his mother the next day and
learned they were living a miserable life in a broken
two-room cottage in a shady neighborhood of
Chicago.
It also turned out that she had fled from her
abusive husband and didn't have enough money for
Jonathan's treatment. Doctors had said Jonathan
could walk normally again, but it would require
expensive surgery.
Felicia, who used to be a surgeon, contacted some
of her medical friends and set up an appointment
for Jonathan. She also started a GoFundMe page
to help the mother and son financially.
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels
Thanks to her help, Jonathan got treated at a good
hospital. His mother, Anna, thanked her several
times for being a savior in their lives by getting
Jonathan treated and arranging for her to work as a
janitor at a hospital.
However, Anna still doesn't know what happened
between Jonathan and Felicia on the bus. When
Anna asked Felicia what persuaded her to help
them, she simply stated that she met Jonathan on
the bus and learned his story from the bus driver,
which motivated her to assist the young boy. But
the truth is that Felicia felt terrible for judging the
boy, so she decided to help him.
What can we learn from this story?
Learn to accept your mistakes and correct them.
Felicia realized she was wrong to judge Jonathan
and corrected her mistake by helping him and his
mother.
Don't jump to conclusions. Felicia and other
passengers on the bus judged Jonathan without
knowing the whole story.
If you enjoyed this story, you might like this one
about a bride who pretends to be an orphan to
exclude her poor, dirty mother from her luxury
wedding.
This account is inspired by our reader's story and
written by a professional writer. Any resemblance to
actual names or locations is purely coincidental. All
images are for illustra
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