Have you Ever Watched Parents with their Small Children and Wanted to Scream in Rage?
Well I have
The bus terminal was a concrete island, covered by a roof, but with no walls. There was a driveway circling the Island. The busses would drive in and park at their assigned berths.
I was one of the contract security guards that patrolled the terminal. I watched as parents sat on benches playing with their cellphones, or nodding off from booze or dope. Their small children would run all over the terminal.
It was not a place for children to run wild
The terminal was a dodgy place, that’s why they had guards. We were always running the homeless off the property, and we often had to call Law Enforcement.
The drunk and stoned homeless people were always a problem. There was a young woman, in her twenties. She had two small children, one still in a stroller.
The stroller prevented her from falling down
It was a good thing she had that stroller, she was too stoned to walk without it. She barely paid attention to the child, not in the stroller. I was always afraid the child would dart under a bus, or get snatched by some pervert.
Parents were on their cellphones not watching as their kids ran everywhere. I arrived at work one afternoon and began my first patrol and almost watched a tragedy unfold.
The kid wanted to pet the pigeons
The bus drivers had a protocol to follow. Before they left the terminal, they would walk around their bus. Looking for bad tires, leaks, anything that was a safety concern.
The driver of the bus had completed his check, got on his bus, and started the engines. He was in minutes of driving off. That’s when the little boy saw the pigeons.
The pigeons were a mated pair that had a nest on the beams supporting the roof of the terminal. They had lived there for years raising countless broods. The bus riders and employees fed them. They had no fear of humans.
It was so close to being a tragedy
The mated pair were under the bus pecking at scraps. The little boy wanted to play with the birds. I saw the boy head under the bus and screamed.
The boy ran off, just as the driver put the bus in gear and drove away.
I had to go to the janitor’s closet and calm down. I never found out where the kid’s parents were. It was a common thing. Little kids playing in the restrooms while mom or dad was on a bench not watching their kids.
Keep your kids warm, seems obvious
The winter months were especially frustrating. Mom and dad would have coats on, but their little ones wouldn’t be wearing so much as a sweater.
I wish that parents would understand, that their children are the most important things in their lives. Children are more important than their cellphone or their next high.
Final Thought:
I liked working on that post. I was able to call the cops often and I was responsible for many people going to jail. It broke my heart though to see the neglect of so many innocent kids.