Because I need something to do with the storm of emotions that begin to swirl when I hear all the district bus drivers come in over our driver’s radio with, “No [Hamlet] Miller on my bus” and all I can think of is my little 5-year-old child wandering around some lookalike bus stop totally confused because he thought it was his stop, but he doesn’t see his mother and brother, and….
Actually, he fell asleep on the wrong school bus. Several things went wrong today, but not the emergency protocol itself, and he was found after about an hour. Still: do not be surprised if you see a story of mine that contains this incident….
[...] -Christa Miller: Why I write dark [...]
That must have been terrifying. I’m so glad he’s all right.
Although our elementary school was just a block away, I picked my kids up everyday because at the time there was “a man in a van” sightings. I finally let it go in about third grade.
God, you must’ve freaked! I’m glad to hear he was okay. When I was five, I missed my bus stop, and the memory of how shaken my parents were is with me still. In fact, I think I said I fell asleep, because I didn’t have the heart to tell them that I missed my stop because I was talking to a pretty girl (she was older, dontcha know — probably 3rd or 4th grade!)
Thanks, guys. I actually was fine up until the point the drivers started to call in one by one… after about the fifth one, that stone dropped into my gut and I was just, “Oh, shit.” I have to say though that all the staff involved were great. Other, of course, than the initial lapse.
Patti – we’ve had those at bus stops around here. I complain about the “Soccer Mom 500″ up at the corner, but really I’m glad so many parents are around to watch out for the kids.
Chris – tooooo funny! Hamlet too likes older girls… but in this case he really was asleep. School wears him out (and it doesn’t help that he hardly eats)!
Oh, NO. Hugs to you, Christa! How on EARTH did he wind up on the wrong bus?!?! And poor Hamlet — how did he take it?
The kids have nametags that are supposed to be checked by three people: the classroom teacher, the bus duty teacher, and the bus driver. #2 and 3 let it slip with him (who followed a preschool friend aboard) and 2 other kids who boarded the wrong buses.
There were a few other problems but that was the source. However, the school has a good system in place for finding lost bus kids, and all the people we dealt with (our own driver, and the principal/office staff) were terrific, both during and the day after.
Oh, and he was asleep. Mainly embarrassed about having boarded the wrong bus, even though it was in no way his fault! He still loves it though, so now that he knows his driver, he’s all good.