A Bird on the Bus

By Ted Ross

Waiting with the crowd at the bus stop on Douglas St. were a father and his son. Son looked to be about eight years of age. The lad was smiling and looking a little pleased as the Beacon Hill bus pulled in.

Ten folks at the stop loaded on the bus. From Douglas at Fort Street the bus headed for Menzies Street on the usual route past the Legislature and along Superior Street. People began alighting throughout the James Bay neighbourhood as the bus proceeded along Menzies and Niagara Streets. Near the end of the route, at the Beacon Hill stop, the father and son left the bus. I alit as well, and took the crosswalk across Douglas, while dad and lad stayed on the park side.

Roughly an hour and a half later, I was at the bus stop to return to town. Father and son coincidentally arrived at the downtown stop. I asked, "Did you have a nice visit at the Park?"

Father responded, "Actually, the most important thing for my boy was the visit to Beacon Drive-In." I chuckled with them, and then the bus was there.

We boarded and took our seats, I in the front, father and youngster in the back. We were the only riders. The bus pulled out and then turned west on Niagara Street. Suddenly the young fellow scuttled forward to address the driver.

In a quiet voice he said, "There's a little bird trapped in the back of the bus. It's sitting on the seat."

"I'll stop right away," said the driver, as he pulled into the Government Street bus stop. Stopping the coach, he opened the back doors, thus setting the vehicle's main brake, and followed the boy to the rear where his dad waited.

The attempts of the three to steer the little wren out through the open back door just didn't work. The bird flew wildly around the back of the coach finally landing in a high corner.

Sensing the futility of the back door exit, the driver's attention fixed on the escape/ventilation hatch which is found on the roof toward the rear of the coach. He opened it to its fullest extent. Light flooded in.

Driver now reached up to the bird, where it was perched. The wren flew, driver put his arm toward the bird, and it landed on his arm.

A tall man, driver stepped the pace to the hatch. There he held his arm high to the opening. The wren kind of hopped from driver's arm to the rim of the hatch. There it lit for a moment, and then flew away.

Driver refastened the hatch. He returned to driving the bus and picking up passengers. At the Fort St. stop, as father and son were getting off, I commented aloud to them that they were the heroes with the driver in saving the bird. Driver chimed in to say that he would not have known of the trapped bird without their help. They left the bus, the boy wearing an ear-to-ear smile!