The Walking Bus - March 15 2024

 

The Walking Bus

March 15 2024



They all grasp the rope,

walking single file

with the sweetly earnest faces

of dutiful kids.

An adorable sight,

eager miniatures

in delectable hats

and a rainbow flag of coats

beside the busy thoroughfare.

But turning off

onto the wooded path

they’re allowed to let go,

dispersing

like eager puppies

released from their pen.

Because it’s safe under the trees.

And 20 feet in

uncannily quiet,

the rush of traffic muffled

and urgent sirens hushed

by the wild underbrush

unsoiled snow.

City kids

released into nature

like the free range creatures

they were born to be.

And after that first excited burst

unnaturally subdued,

gazing up wide-eyed

at this strange new place.

Which was still somehow familiar,

if only from fairy tales

and picture books.

Some kids tended to wander

dawdle

stumble off,

and the teacher was beside herself

frantic to keep track.

But why bother?

They'd already dropped the rope

and there weren’t any cars.

Who knew

such a sanctuary existed

so close to home?

A place

where they could let go,

explore on their own,

release the hair-trigger energy

single file kids

come loaded with.

Free to imagine

whatever strays into the sites

of scattershot minds

when the safety's off.