For once the boot was on the other foot.
How nice it was to hear another bus driver spout a long list of excuses as to why the school bus was forty-five minutes late when it only had five miles to travel and the roads were clear and free of ice. I thought of the many times I have had to squirm and extricate myself from receiving a berating from an angry parent for keeping them waiting by the roadside, so I was as polite as I could be.
Anyway it didn't matter as the bush telegraph had worked and most parents up the valley had got wind of the rumour that the bus was not going to come this morning. The parents had bundled their children into the back of their cars and driven them to school themselves. Some had stopped and picked up waiting children on the way down.
When the bus did actually arrive, there were only a few children left to transport. The driver was a straight up and friendly bloke. He said the reason why he was late was simple - the usual school bus - the Big Banana had broken down and was in the garage, the regular driver did not like driving the other bus, the yard had been cleared just enough for a motorcycle to get through the gates and he had therefore got stuck.
After a morning like that I felt that tact was the better part of valour and I kept my trap firmly shut and passed no comment. Besides he redeemed himself on the afternoon run and arrived five minutes early.
If Don Camillo had run a bus company in the North of England..........
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