Life From a Bus Window

[cbertsch]

I managed to recover enough to meet my exceedingly important parental obligation to accompany Skylar on her class's fieldtrip to the Desert Museum. I was burning reserves I didn't know I had, but I made it. Nothing dramatic happened a la Kim's experience on the last fieldtrip. The kids in my group were excited but responded to commands like, "Get off those rocks," when necessary. All the kids were well-behaved, actually. Still, dozens of orange-clad kindergartners are pretty taxing at their best.

It was worth it, though. Although we didn't have much time at the Desert Museum, our group did get to see a javelina, three coyotes, various gorgeous copper-based crystals and plenty of edgy reptiles. My personal highlight, however, was riding on a school bus for the first time since high school. I guess it's like riding a bicycle, because I settled right in. I was always prone to getting bus sick. This time, though, I made sure to lower the windows before I reached the point of no return.

I don't know how many of you rode school buses as children. I took the bus from the first day of kindergarten until I started driving myself in the eleventh grade. In Pennsylvania, the route was long and winding, with plenty of nice scenery. Today I was reminded how many hours I spent taking the world in from those distinctive windows.

My thumbs still feel the pressure from sliding the window catch. And that's a good thing.

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[catfishvegas.livejournal.com]

My strongest memories of sullen adolescence are riding the school bus home. There was just something about living in the middle of nowhere, getting off the bus at the last stop and still having to walk a half mile home...