Bad Kids, Miscreants, Juvenile Delinquents, Scourge of Society, Deplorable Brats, Unwanted. Harsh words that could aptly define some of the children I transport daily to school, yet a horrible and tragic misjudgment of whom these children really are.
Let me back up and start over. This year, I was tasked with driving a group of children from, what some would describe, as the "poorer" part of town. I can't totally argue with that description. Most of these kids are wearing clothes that are, quite obviously, "hand me downs". I mean when a child's pant leg is a full 2 inches underneath his/her shoes to the point they are walking on them, one could safely conclude that an elder sibling wore them or they were donated by some philanthropic organization. Half these children look undernourished and their hygiene is questionable at best. I haven't learned all their personal stories...... yet, but again, safe to say they come from broken homes and in some cases are being raised by grandparents. I mean, I see who is standing at the bus stop and at least half of them are my age.
Now that I've described the situation, if you'll indulge me, I'd like to keep a running journal of how I'm trying to make a difference in the lives of these children.
The Bad Kids who really aren't bad.
The Miscreants who are misunderstood
The Juvenile Delinquents that are just juveniles
The Scourge of Society that society has forgotten
Deplorable Brats who are the products of deplorable parenting
Unwanted.... but not anymore
I've been driving them for 2 weeks now and I love each and every one of these Bad Kids. They're my miscreants, and this is their story.
Chapter 1: Chaos on the Bus
I'd be lying if I told you things went smoothly the first day. I thought I'd play a little mood music in the afternoon, to show these new kids that an old man like me can relate. You see I have this theory on bus driving that has to do with reaching kids through music but this group made me question it. It's been my experience in the past, that kids really enjoy it when I play music they can relate to. They don't want to hear music that the bus driver enjoys. Anything done before 2010 is considered "The Oldies" to an elementary aged child. No, they want to hear the songs they enjoy on youtube or that they've downloaded to their ipods. So, like I said, I played some Kidz Bop music on the bus's stereo system that was more relevant to their current listening habits. Big time rookie mistake. The minute Justin Timberlake began belting out the first verse of "Can't Stop the Feeling" from the movie "Trolls" the entire bus erupted in joyous screams, which isn't too bad but when combined with raucous jumping on seats and dancing in the aisles can form the recipe for chaos and confusion.
Time to rethink my music theory or at least establish boundaries for when the music is being played. I don't like thinking that much so I chose the later option.
I silenced the bus and did my best to restore order. I explained that the music was a privilege I was providing and they would have to stay seated if they wanted to hear more. I turned the volume back up and was quickly disappointed once again. Their good behavior lasted less than five seconds before chaos resumed. Again the bus was silenced. It was too hard to maintain "safe driving" and discipline "bad behavior" at the same time. I had to make a choice and Safe Driving won out. No more music. I needed to establish ground rules for when the music is on and tomorrow is another day.
