Blessed are the peacemakers

I was reminded this morning of a Scripture, “Blessed are the peacemakers for they will be called the Children of God.”

Sometimes life does not go as you wish it would, or even in a way you think is fair. But the ones who prevail are the peacemakers. Our world lives in an atmosphere of contention when someone has a viewpoint different than theirs. Whereas, the Power of Spiritual living is in being peacemakers... we live in the position of being children of God when we do.

Some things were going on in bus route changes. Some changes not to my favor.  Although when on Line 2 yesterday, someone said that there are signs on Commercial that the bus is not going down Commercial anymore. I spoke up and told him Line 2 is going down Commercial after the changes,  but only east bound, not west bound.

Just a small point of clarification, maybe made a difference.

Then prior to this post I had a post on this blog about some frustrations. I just deleted it. Why? 
The top senior executive who oversees the transit operation read it and gave me a personal phone call. It wasn’t the content of the call that got my attention, but the spirit of the call.
A peacemaker I thought.

I was listening to a live feed yesterday of a gathering in Kansas City called One Thing. The speaker pointed out that our place in life is to live out the Beatitudes, Matthew 5:3-10. As I was waking up this morning, this came back to mind... Blessed are the Peacemakers for they shall be called the Children of God.
(It was almost as if the very voice of God was whispering it in my mind.)

I was reminded that this is my place and has been my spirit for many years. I am called to be a peacemaker. I deleted my last post, and replaced it with this.

It is another lesson learned from riding the bus. I may not get things as I wish, but in all things I should be a peacemaker in all those things.

Freedom... still our cry

Got on Line 2 and headed downtown to see the Lincoln movie. The movie wrapped around Lincoln's drive to have the abolition of slavery proclamation become the 13th Amendment to the Constitution. He was influenced by Greek mathematician Euclid to make his point that since white people are human beings and black people are human beings, it's a self evident truth that they are equal to each other.

Lincoln: "Even in that 2000 year old book of mechanical law, it is a self evident truth that things that are equal to the same thing are equal to each other."

He felt it was improper for one person to have complete authority over another person and go as far to declare them as property he owned. No one has the right to take away someone else’s freedom. This has become the cornerstone of the reasons and arguments we present today on individual rights for our freedoms.

Having lifestyle freedom is the cry of humanity. This may also be a foundation for why cities host public transit systems.  People deserve the freedom, the right, the opportunity to get around. Public transportation is a means to satisfy this freedom, or right to everyone in all circumstances of life. We have transportation freedom options in America... the car, the train, the airplane, the motorcycle, the bicycle, the feet … and the bus. We each have the same opportunity to go to the store, go to a park, get to work, pick up food, go see friends, enjoy a ride, or take a walk. We like our options to take different routes at different times... to have the option, ability to choose which one we prefer.

In transit we may have overlapping options, but it’s a place to experience our freedom as we personally desire. Freedom, independence go hand in hand. Having it the way we want is an American expectation. Although, when we have had a freedom and we feel we have lost it by someone else's decision, of which we are not privileged to be part of, we naturally resent it. If it continues, we have a tendency to rebel against it. People who lose freedoms eventually rise up against those who they feel were responsible for them losing their freedom.

Lincoln had a handle on not only human nature, but a society's nature if freedom were not given to all who rightfully deserve it. If slavery remained in America, he knew America would eventually face another uprising... even maybe worse than the civil war.  History has also shown it has to be more than law, but part of the human spirit as well.

When people feel suppressed,  the longer the suppression and the greater  the degree someone feels suppressed, the greater the level and intensity and destructiveness of an uprising that will follow. The reverse is true. Increased freedoms, involvement by people affected by decisions, the more they naturally work congenially with each other. Authority over others while taking away someone’s voice has never worked.... even more so in a free culture where it is expected.

The bus systems have provided transportation options to communities which keep civility in the community. Even when not directly used, to know it is there, imbeds a sense of option and variety, a sense of freedom in one’s mind. Those who regularly use transit many times tell you that they use more than one bus line. The sense of option produces a sense of freedom, civility, and harmony in social structures. Life becomes productive while enhancing lifestyle for all.

The Lincoln movie was a thought-provoking one for me. The movie got out just in time for me to catch Line 22. I thought on these things on the way back to my place... and still am. I am glad public transit provided me the freedom and option to see the movie, which inspired my life.

Sorry, but I do really appreciate you

I heard someone say
 "I got to live with the hand dealt me." 
I heard someone say
"some are walking around without a full deck."
I have heard both sides of the story.  
 
I was visiting with some bus riders. As we talked about our experiences on the bus, one theme became evident.  It is like the riders feel a sense of not being recognized. No one to talk to about how they feel. How they may be misunderstand.

A part of this chat which stood out to me is the affection the bus riders have about the bus, the drivers.

If they could say something to the drivers it would be something like this:


I see you most everyday Mr., Ms. Bus Driver. You are to me the one person that I look forward to seeing every day. I may not be in the best mood at times, and be frustrated about my life as I am sure you are at times about yours. But like you, I am trying my best to make it with what I got.

But you know... I look forward to seeing you come down the street. My heart lifts up when I see your number from a distance. I know for a second in my life someone cares about where I want to go. It may not be important, or seem important, but it is important to me, and you are kind enough to stop.

Sorry, if I get rattled and don’t have my change, lost my pass, fumble around to pay my fare. I know you have a schedule too, and I do appreciate knowing we can count on it too.

Some days I may not have my full deck with me. Please understand. I may not know I don’t have a full deck with me.

It sorta hurts my feelings when I think you think that I am a low life person, and you may look down on me. Sorry, I am trying to do the best I can with what I have.

On my bad days, those three seconds when I see that slight smile, well, you may not realize this, but you make my day. I don’t have friends some days. I may not act like I appreciate you on my bad days, but I do. Sorry, I don’t show it at times. I may not be good at showing appreciation or some days I may not be nice.  But, I will say, when you are nice, it does mean a lot.

Mr., Ms. Bus Driver you are my only friend for those few seconds. I feel important for those few seconds when you welcome me on the bus. No one else does.

In the mornings when I wake up, I hear the hummm of the bus go by. I look forward to my ride. I look forward to the time you take me to where I want to go.

Thanks for being my friend, for a moment, Mr., Ms. Bus Driver. I know you don’t know those days when I need a friend.

And if you are having bad day, I really, deep in my heart, want to be your friend too.

Have a happy day Mr., Ms. Bus Driver. You make my day.

 
A note: Some people lack social graces, and lack social problem solving skills... Some don't understand to get a problem fixed you go to the person with authority and ability who can help you solve your problem. And how you present your case makes all the difference in the world.

Love Works, is a new book by the CEO of Silver Dollar City, also featured on Undercover Boss. Here’s a summary:
http://spiritsavvybiz.blogspot.com/2012/11/love-works-heres-how.html

Love works.

Always say Thank You

I was thinking of the importance of saying “Thank You.” When boarding Line 14 the other morning as I swiped my card, without thinking, I told the driver “thank you.”
He very unpretentiously said, “you’re welcomed.” Then I thought I wonder how many people board the bus and tell the driver thank you as they get on. Many say thank you when they get off, which is a very nice gesture I feel. I see having the opportunity for transportation as a privilege, so a thank you would be fitting. Not sure what the driver thought I was thanking him for.

What brought this on was I was wanting to say  “thank you”  to someone who has been kind and contributed to my life the last several months.  

Last week, I was getting on Line 2 after going to the grocery and walking back to a bus stop at an obscure place. ( I like to use them sometimes... keeps the drivers on their toes you know.)
As I boarded and I swiped my card I heard someone say, “It didn’t talk to you that time.”
I looked up. There was the director of transit on the bus smiling at me. Not often do you get to see the director of the whole bus operation on the bus as your personal hostess for the bus ride.  Her comment took me back several months to a bus incident I had.

The bus system had just added a swipe system on the bus so you when you get a pass it has a magnetic stripe on it so you can swipe it. The new swipe machines were having some bad-hair days at first, and one Saturday after using the bus several times that day, the swipe system was not at its best behavior. It would say, “Card is not valid”  in a female, monotone voice when it didn’t recognize the code on it.

Since my card came up “invalid” several times in one day,  that night I felt it was time to share this with Transit.  On their website comment page, I told them about my frustration with the swipe system not working right.  I was being insulted by being told “I was invalid.”  (I may not have been in one of my best self worth days as I was taking this rather personally.) To my surprise Monday I got an email from the director of transit thanking me for sharing the problem I was having with the swipe machine. It was a new system and they were still working out some of the bugs. She said she would send this information on to the appropriate people. It was a very nice, considerate email and she considered  my comments as “valid.”  It really impressed me on the prompt nature of the response and the thoughtfulness in it.

Feeling a little embarrassed myself for making snide remarks about a machine insinuating  I was invalid as a person, I felt I should share some positive things of which there were several. So I communicated a couple of the good experiences I was having through an email. Again, a very nice email came back thanking me for sharing what I did and she said she would pass it on to the ones involved.  I was feeling a little better about myself for doing that and feeling more “valid” as a person.

Over the next several months, that initial communication opened up other communications and observations I had on the bus system. Without exception, a very nice positive email came back. Not sure where she learned this art, but they were constantly uplifting and encouraging to me as well. So I decided to start this blog and tell stories of my bus experiences. Again, positive, reassuring feedback would come via email after I posted each thought. It really just egged me on.

Just recently I posted a story on Mike, a bus rider putting his life back together  (October 1, 2012 post)    It was about how brief comments can make a big difference in someone’s life.  The transit director may not had known this but she was making a huge difference in my life. Just by the mere fact she would extend appreciation for effort and add encouragement within her response. As I was to Mike, she was to me. It was a time in my life when I needed something a little extra.

The comment she shared that day, “it (the machine) didn’t talk to you that time” includes so much more. She always talked to me, shared, explained and then encouraged... naturally gifted at inspiring. As someone who uses words to express myself, I can’t find the right words to express my feelings of what she did for me over the summer. Like Mike, I am putting some things back together in my life. The bus was a place it began formulating and re-surging in my mind and spirit again.

I asked her for a meeting once and she granted it.  One question I had was what she hoped for in the bus system in the future.  After 38 years with the transit system she was retiring.  In a reflective, heartfelt voice, she said she hoped the community programs to help those who need transportation, but can’t afford it,  would continue. The bus is the only outlet some have to get around. It was evident she was very passionate on this, and compassionate to the less fortunate. Her voice, facial expression and eyes showed the respect she had for people, and some just need a little help.

In that light, I may be one of those. She always showed respect and honored my communications, not knowing who I was or wasn’t. That didn’t matter to her. What mattered was... I was a human being and a bus customer.

Running into her,  within the last 10 days of her retiring from  her position as transit director, I wanted to share personally these thoughts with her. I didn’t then, but now I want everyone to know what they were. She deserves it. If she had this impact on me, I can’t imagine the impact she has had on many over the years. She stands as a symbol of what our relationships with people should be... on the job, on the street, in the home.

From the first email as she responded to my comment through the website, to the emails that followed and then responding to this blog, she is contagiously courteous, respectful and above all a re-encourager,  an inspire-er, a motivator.   Her competent caring spirit stands out as a rare remarkable quality.

“You make my bus experience the delight of my day!”  Thank You … Carol Cruise.
And thanks for the time “you”  took to talk to me.

Mike... going somewhere in his place

Over the last several months I have been running into Mike. The first time he was on Line 14. It was fairly full that day. The one seat available was next to someone who wore an old brimmed fishing-type hat, his dress was haggard and he seemed like he could be a little thin on the dollar side.   He was reading what looked like a very old Bible... like the Gideon Bible you would find in old motels. I asked him what he was reading. He said Proverbs. Proverbs is good I told him. He spoke slowly and chose his words slowly. As we were getting off the bus, I asked him his name. He said Mike. I told him to keep reading That Book, "it will serve you well."

At another time on Line 14,  I saw Mike again, this time across the aisle. There he was reading that old Bible. It was red with a hardcover, and small type in columns. What are you reading today I asked. “Proverbs,” Mike said. “Proverbs ... there's a lot of practical wisdom there,” I said. “Stick with it, and good things will come your way.” I told him.  “I like Psalms too. They were written by a great warrior and are encouraging for people in battles.”

A week or so passed. When  I got on 14, I was sitting at the back on the side seats. The person on the back row spoke to me. He asked, “Aren’t you  the one I talked to about reading the Bible and getting my life back together?” “Oh, yes, you’re Mike.” He said, "well, I am about to make some changes. Soon I will get back to where I need to be." For some reason he felt he needed to let me know this. Something about our brief conversations struck a chord in his thinking and he was getting ready to commit to an improved  lifestyle. He never shared the specifics, but he seemed to be on the verge of a turning point in his life.

Some more time passed, then I saw something very unusual at the terminal. Someone was laying motionless on the pavement just across from the terminal. A security guard was there and a police officer came up. I walked closer and I saw another person dressed in unkempt attire kneeling next to him with his hand on this motionless person’s side. As I got closer, it looked like Mike. He was on one knee, leaning over this young man laying there.  It seemed like Mike’s lips were moving. It was a very touching scene. An ambulance then came by to attend to the young man.

Later on, as I was walking down the street by the small hamburger place just up from the terminal, there was Mike. He was reading another book, with a Spiritual theme, also with some age on it.  I told Mike  I saw him kneeling over a young man laying on the street across from the terminal last week. “Were you praying for him?” I asked. “He had a seizure...  I was trying to comfort him.” Mike answered in his hesitant, low graveling voice.

Now Mike was starting to get my attention. He was not embarrassed to help this young man when at the terminal; some people seem to stay their distance from others. The story of the Good Samaritan in the Bible came to mind. Most avoided the person injured on the ground but one person stopped to help him. That day Mike was the Good Samaritan. It got to me as many of us just choose to not get involved. He showed more care than most and was oblivious to anyone else around him.  Mike didn’t care what others thought, he cared more about the well-being of the person who was hurting and laying on the pavement.

Low and behold, a few weeks later, as I was boarding Line 2 to make a quick run to Walmart, there was Mike, the only other rider on the bus. I sat across from him. Again, Mike was reading his little, old red Bible. “Reading Proverbs?” I asked. “No, reading Psalms.”  “They are good too,” I responded. “Heading to Walmart?”  “No,” said Mike. “I am going to the used book store. They are holding some books for me.”

Maybe Mike’s life is just a fantasy. He lives with some hope. His fantasy may someday be his reality.  “ Every man has a place, in his heart there’s a space, and the world can’t erase his fantasies.” (from Fantasy by Earth, Wind and Fire)*
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z3ALlhszIeo

As I was thinking of Mike I think everyone needs a cheerleader. I may have been that for Mike over the last few months in a quiet way. Just being around and being supportive, especially when you know it’s a good thing for them, may be all the encouragement someone needs. Our small conversations can be a big conversation in someone’s life that can trigger just enough encouragement they need to make the changes they really want to make.

Then the more I thought about Mike and my taking some credit for some of the good things I was seeing develop in his life... all of a sudden my mind did a reversal on me. Maybe this is not about Mike at all. Maybe I just met one of those Angels that we see appear in the movies. You know, the one dressed like a homeless, poor person, but someone sent from God to show us a better way.
Maybe Mike was my Angel to make me see more of what I should be.

Those that we think we are helping, 
may very well be the ones helping or teaching us.


*I heard this song, Fantasy, when on Line 14 as the driver ran into the transit office to get something. He had his radio on and this song was playing... I found it on You Tube. It seemed to belong to Mike’s story.

A Bus Date.. getting a little closer

How’s your love life?  

During the early part of the day, end of the day, Saturdays in the middle of the day, many buses are very full. You normally have to sit next to someone or someone will sit next to you. To some this may seem uncomfortable, but on the bus it seems acceptable... really doesn’t bother you that much.

Then the other day it hit me... what a place for a date.
Been wanting to get closer to someone?
The bus is the answer.

Whether single or married, this is a great novel, different, and unusually romantic possibility.
The seats are close together so you sit very close together. More than on any other form of transportation... trains and boats and planes. Reminds me of a song.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZzZnQ7hX8cM

For example, you may be in college, have been wanting to get close to someone. Been a few places but always had some physical distance between you. Suggest a bus date. Make it sound different, metropolitan, somewhat earthy, while artsy. Now, you have your big chance. When you board the bus you of course will sit together. There is no other place where you can sit as close as you do on the bus. After a few hop ons and off, you will have eliminated the physical distance factor and establish a closer feel to each other. Great opportunity here to get close to someone you really would like too.

And the married couple who goes your own way so much, suggest a unique night out. Use the bus as your transportation. Maybe it will bring back the memory of your college days when you rode the bus around the city.  Or let it be just one of those simple moments that most couples seem to relish the simplicity of. Take time planning your routes together... using the city transit website. Find out how your bus system works and make it an adventure together... to a stroll downtown, off to a quaint eating place, a walk in a park, a special dessert. If you live out of town, come in, park the car/SUV and use the bus.

Then too, you are really close and it’s a great place to spur some intimate conversation. With some people around(don’t want all to hear), a whisper in the ear, touch of the hands, creating time of moving closer that takes you back to when you were hooked on that feeling.  A good place to spark the feelings of those times when the fire burned brighter.

The bus is a great novel date idea that could kick the romance up a notch or two. Or if it’s the one you have been wanting to get closer to, arrange the date so you must make several bus changes... the frequency of being close breaks the ice so it becomes a spontaneous way of becoming closer.

The bus is a good place to get closer, naturally. Better than trains, or boats, or planes, and the automobile.

Confessions of a timid, trepid bus rider

I am basically a shy person. It has been a challenge to overcome it. Although even to this day I have my days. Today I needed to go work on a biz book summary so I took Line 25 to Barnes and Noble. I study entrepreneurism and write another blog about it. On my return the bus was really full. For some reason the days of my youth came back to mind.

When I started elementary school I lived in the country and a bus picked me up to go to school. I was scared to death the first day of school. I didn’t know these people and know where I was going. I remembered the fear of boarding the bus when I was very little. It was totally a foreign country to me. Many days I would feign being sick so I would not have to go to school. It was just this fear of going into an environment I was not familiar with.

Some days, when boarding the public transit bus, this comes over me. It must be deeply imbedded in my subconscious. Not every day, but once in awhile it comes back over me.
I see some on the bus who have that same fear in them... a feeling of being out of place, shy, drawn back. Many have no choice... they must use this form of transportation. I have actually heard someone say the reason they don’t ride the bus is fear. “I am afraid to ride the bus,” someone once told me.

Over the years what I learned to do is face the fear. I don’t feel comfortable in meetings where I go and I don’t know anyone.  But in what I do I have to do it. My remedy... attack the fear. “Feel the fear and do it anyway” is my motto. It’s hard sometimes, but I still do it. I may fight it right up to the hour I must go to the meeting, a reception.  As a youth, this fear caused me to develop a stuttering condition. In some cases I feel it coming on. I have learned how to handle it.  I have college degrees in speech and theater. I took speech classes to overcome the fear of people, to learn to speak in groups and to people. The remedy... face the fear and attack it. I see some on the bus with that same look in their eyes. I know where they are. Anyone who has had to overcome something can spot it in someone else.

On the bus you are really close sometimes. You sit right next to someone you don’t know and there is no space,  literally no space between you. There’s a moment of reckoning. Do I sit next to that person or not?  It’s not easy.

So what’s the point here. Doing this forces me to face this on a regular basis. I have chosen to fight it, even though some days my psyche reverts back to the little boy getting on the school bus. As a stutterer, I fought it by becoming a speaker. Although I am still somewhat reserved in groups socially.

Whatever I was weak in, I attacked it. I still do.
Over the years I have learned one origin of fear...  focusing too much on ourselves. When love is the focus and my attention is on others, I notice it subdues it. In speaking, when I focus on the people and helping them, fear is not as present.

The little bus trips some days are me continuing to attack what was once a fear. Surveys indicate there are many who have a form of social phobia... the fear of being around groups of people.  All who are fearful like this, I say get out in it.  Attack it.  Use public transit as a place to go into the unknown, and take it on.

The bus culture is an opportunity to keep attacking what you feel insecure about, fearful of, and not to let it beat you.
 
The person next to me may not know I am having a bad brain day. But he is my ally to help me overcome what controls my mind some days.  After a few glances at those around me, they don’t seem too scary.  So I make this imaginary pact with them in my mind... “with you and me we will win.” When I get off the bus I want to say, “thank you... we won today!”

“Learn to live through love;  love drives out fear.”

Bravery is to be afraid, but do it anyway. Have a brave day.

The Bus Culture needs a Business, Professional culture presence

Being on Line 14 is a interesting ride. It goes by an infamous place for less fortunate people... with a hotel named after a state. Quite the combination... have a name of a state, be a hotel, but houses the displaced.

The Statue of Liberty inscription could very well fit there:
“Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses, yearning to breath free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore,
Send these, the homeless, tempest tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door.”

Many look down on this hotel, but maybe we should salute it as we go by because it represents the keynote invitation to  America.

I have picked up on several conversations on Line 14. One was a single mom needing a way to find money to pay for living expenses for herself and her children. A young man attending the local community college hoped to be finished soon, and was looking forward to getting a job. Another guy pointed out a CAT earth-mover that was sitting by a local convenience store being renovated. He told his riding companion that he would be driving that in two weeks. He added, “I won’t be broke no more.”  

No one likes not having money but we go after it in many different ways. It’s so much a person’s mindset. Some are retrofitting life, and others are being proactive. Some look back to where to get it from something or somebody. Others look forward to what they can do that will provide money in return for their efforts.

Panhandlers ask you for money and offer nothing in return. Someone who has no clue to who you are may ask you for money to ride the bus. I am amazed at the various price ranges for a bus fare they request... as they must think those they ask have no clue.  (Now, I have never been hit up at the terminal for money to ride the bus, although I have at other places. They really are a misrepresentation of who uses the public transit system, and give people the wrong  impression of what is going on in the bus. They create a misleading picture of the whole bus culture.)

On the other hand, a business person who wants money will offer you something of value and service to you. If it fits your need you will give him money for it, and he prices it so he has some left over above his expenses.  One person offers you nothing in return, while the other offers you something of fair value, that you desire to use.  One is retrofitting, the other proactivating.  Why is that?

From those on the bus, it is my guess two out of every three are trying... others are down on their luck as we say, and the rest may have fallen out of their high chair when little and had permanent brain damage.

I feel most are trying. What’s unfortunate is they have never been around those who live proactively. They don’t understand the principle of fair exchange. It’s not part of their developed mindset. No one has ever had influence in their lives  to show them a better way, or they lack a positive role model that would demonstrate another way. They just don’t know.
So many have molded a get-what-I-can-for-free-for-doing-nothing-in-return  mindset on how to do it.

Two different ways of thinking:
The retrofit mindset has a problem and looks for someone to blame, tries to find someone else to fix it.
Th proactive mindset has a problem and looks for an opportunity within the problem, then enlists others to participate in the opportunity with him.
The retrofit mindset... shrinks life.
The proactive mindset... keeps expanding life.

I talked to someone who once lived at the “hotel”. The way they saw it was that many there took pride in panhandling. They bragged to each other about it, and just infected more with their retrofit ideologies. Living around others who live that way,  they had a tendency to feed off of each other. On the bus and around the terminal, the retrofit mindset when together can fester like a virus.  It becomes more cemented in their lifestyle than ever. When the talk there is about  something is wrong with everything, everybody, infestation grows. It’s not proactive, solution-based thinking. They express helplessness, and show their ineptness in how to negotiate something better.  So, they just complain.

How can we break this up on the bus and in the bus culture?  I feel we need to bring the other mindset of proactive living into the mix so others see another way. Those who desire to raise the standard of the community, and have figured this out, practice it, and live proactively can change others. What is needed I feel is those in business, professions, skilled labor can serve their community well by getting in there and stir in some new ingredients to this recipe of living. If two people in business were talking to each other on the bus, the conversation would be totally different. It would be people who are problem solvers and looking for viable solutions, taking productive actions, looking at problems with a belief in a solution, enjoying themselves and having fun with life.
This would begin to rejuvenate a despairing culture. Others would hear. You are close to each other on the bus and it’s easy to over-hear conversations.

Why don’t others ride the bus who could be implants to cultivate a new culture? It may be the bad rap the panhandlers create in using the bus ride as a method to get money.  It’s a false image of what’s there. Based on what I see, it’s not as bad as some not on public transportation make it. Much can be said to justify the use of public transit, such as the lower cost of transportation, strengthening the foundations of alternative transportation, and interacting with others which could increase the quality of our community as a whole.

This last one is what is needed so urgently... bettering the community as a whole. By segregating into our own little groups we aren’t bettering of the whole. A blended culture can grow up to be a healthier culture. The bus is a natural blender.

Business people, creatives, professionals, managers, community leaders and social service agents, the retrofitted society needs your proactive vision. Just being there... so people pick up on your character, your attitude, your aura, your Spirit... just being there makes a difference. Proactive role models are needed to be around the bus culture.

When you love somebody, 
and that person thinks you are somebody,
that person will copy you.

The bus culture experience can change to vision, hope, possibilities, solutions. The culture presence can change which would lead to refreshed ideals, to changing the way of thinking. We can make impressions of positive, proactive living into the lives of those of which this is a foreign way of living.
And, then everyone will have a better bus culture experience.
The transit system needs you.  

(Note: I took liberty to recreate the word retrofit into a cultural characteristic.)

Bus drivers as change agents

It was a rainy day and most were congregating in the terminal. Two were talking and obviously in some kind of a recovery program. The one sounded like he had been incarcerated for a while, and his mindset was one  hardened to changing his ways. He was to some degree continuing to brag on a lifestyle that got him in a bad place in the first place. A bystander was listening to them, and I knew who he was... his brother was also in a recovery program.

As I listened, and watched, I could feel the climate in the room. The person I knew was friendly, until the other two began talking. You could see the him change as the other two talked. Friendly to me at first, then his attitude shifted, to not even looking at me as I walked out to catch a bus. When together, they play tough. When alone, they can be cordial.

Why do I have faith in people being transformed? I have seen it. My Dad owned a dairy operation. He had several working for him on a regular basis. We called them hired hands. On several occasions, some came to my Dad looking for work, just getting out of jail. They asked for a job to start over. In many occasions, my Dad would hire them.

Growing up I had chores to do.  I worked beside these guys on a regular basis. One job which required my assistance was bagging grain to be made into feed for the cows. It took two of us to do it... one to hold the burlap bag and the other to shovel it in. I was the bag holder,  spending hours at a time with many who were rough, from the other side of the tracks, as we worked on chores. More of my time growing up was with these guys than others. As we worked together, they would frequently talk about their lives. My parents were strong Christians, who never cussed, expressed anger, or told vulgar stories. As the boss's son, these guys seemed to respect that and did not do that around me.

Baseball and football were favorite sports of mine. We had pick-up games frequently. Since they lived in houses my Dad owned, we many times played there. My Dad would always invite them to go to church with us. Many wouldn't go, but they had no doubt to what my Dad stood for. Our family was steady in our standards. We never condemned but always stayed consistent to what we believed in. My Dad was always fair, treated everyone with dignity and kindness, and lived who he was. To this day, I don't understand hypocrisy. I never saw a double standard in our home. Those who worked for my Dad never saw a double standard. This over time had an effect. When you do what you believe is honorable and noble... in public and behind closed doors... others just know when you're a straight shooter.

Not to sugar coat all this... I saw my Dad cussed at, lied to, and threatened. Although, he still stayed true to what he believed. 

I saw many lives change. Not so much by words but consistency in lifestyle. It was more about who my Dad was, always honest to others in speech and character. I learned this... respect, kindness, courtesy, honesty, thoughtfulness, consistency win out over time.

One time, when I was in college and home for summer,  I was crossing the town square of the small town where I went to high school. I heard someone call my name. I looked around and there was one of the hired hands I had worked with. It had been several years since I had seen him. He was married, had children, working a steady job, and living straight. He made it a point to tell me the difference my Dad made in his life.  He gave my Dad credit for turning his life around by giving him a second chance.

I think one reason I have been fascinated by the bus culture is it reminds me of my days growing up. I am still acclimating to bus culture, although my desire is to inspire people to always do better, try hard and keep improving themselves. It started in my childhood working with these guys. Some had no vision or ambition.  This again locked in... as I wanted to inspire people in all rungs of life's ladder to continually develop themselves, live for more or better, cultivate vision and make life a personal mission... the bus culture is similar to the element of society of society I grew up with. They are the same kind of folks I have desired to influence to change.

While on the bus and at the terminal, I have seen some unscrupulous people.  Although I firmly believe they can be turned around. Because I have seen it with my own eyes. I have witnessed it happening.

With that in mind I know the leadership who drives the buses are crucial to changing our society. The driver may be the only positive role model some have. A driver's show of respect may be the only respect someone gives them. The belief and kindness shown may be the only belief and kindness someone shows to them.

When this is real, people follow our example. If it is not real, fake, a hypocrisy, people rebel more and become worse. The potential for positive change of our culture is so much in the hands of the transit operator. What they do and how they treat others can change a dark, defeated, hardened part of our world.

I can see it may be challenging to handle certain people every day. But, in the long run, if all the drivers work with a sense of mission within the job, life transformation can be possible, it can begin.

My dogged belief is .... I have seen it, I know it can happen and the transit operator holds a key that can change things to the better, that no one else can. We can start edging the bottom to move it up.

For the record: I do see a high level of professionalism among the operators, nonetheless, the mission may extend beyond this to a civil responsibility. The imperative challenge is being in the strategic position of being a change agent.

Those who drive a bus can lead a needed change in America... by moving the bottom rung of the ladder up a notch or two.  It is more than just a job. It is a special assignment that can bring improvement to society it so desperately needs. A transit system can influence a culture by a proactive persona of operation.

I respect you and am cheering you on.


As my pattern I like songs to communicate my message.   So here's one for the occasion. When a patron gets on,   ... "Hey, why don't you take a chance on me.?"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CHk2I-sNoGI
("Take a chance on me" by Abba)

My Dad did to many... and he won many over... over time from day to day.