The Old Lady On The Bus

I remember getting on a bus one evening with my guide dog. This was before I became a quad. I dropped my dog's harness handle and she climbed the steps just ahead of me as she did many times before. There were a lot of people on the bus, and as I paused to show the driver my ID she gently sniffed the leg of old lady who was seated at the front of the bus by the door.

She didn't usually sniff anyone unless she caught the smell of something interesting, but this time the old lady started yelling at me! She yelled at me to control my dog and told me how I didn't deserve to have a dog if I couldn't keep it under control!

I sat across from her because it was the only free seat where we could both fit. It wasn't easy getting through a crowded bus and squishing ourselves into a seat that faced forward. She continued telling me off for quite awhile. All because my guide dog sniffed her leg.

I was in my early 20's and back then when someone did things like that I didn't say anything back to them. I just absorbed what they said and didn't defend myself. I was raised to respect people who were older than myself and I really didn't feel right about telling a little old lady what I thought of her in the middle of a crowded bus!

When the person who was sitting next to me got off a man came from the back of the bus and sat next to me. I was trying my best to hold back tears because to me it felt like I had been told I didn't deserve to have a child. Sophie is such a huge part of my life.

This kind man asked me what Sophie's name was and told me what a wonderful dog she was. It made me feel a lot better, all because he decided to take a few minutes to talk to me.

The passengers further back on the bus were discussing this lady's behavior, and at one of the main stops a guy who seemed to be in his 30's stopped and told the lady that she should be ashamed of herself and that he really hopes he isn't that bitter when he gets to that age! A lot of the people who got off of the bus at that stop also made comments to me about how well behaved and nice Sophie was. She had been sitting up looking around the whole time as she always did.

Some time later I was thinking about this and realized that I had come across this lady on a bus before. I got on a bus with some friends form university and as we passed an older lady she started yelling at me to keep “that thing” away from her. We went all the way to the back of the bus that time. I guess some people are just really bitter. If she was scared of dogs she didn't have to be mean about it.

The moral of the story is a little kindness goes a long way. Even after four or five years I still remember this incident and I'm still grateful for the kindness of these strangers.

Kim