Dwayne, my typically good-natured bus driver in the morning, was obviously rattled one day last week.
"What's wrong with today's kids? They have no manners!"
He was very upset by an episode that happened that morning. A handicapped man was getting on the bus. School kids were occupying the seating area that was reserved for the elderly and disabled passengers.
Before Dwayne set down the ramp for the gentleman in the wheelchair, he politely requested the kids sitting in the disabled seating section to get up to make room for the passenger in the wheelchair. As soon as the students got up, another set of kids took their place on the vacated seats.
Dwayne screamed (a very unusual occurrence, mind you): "I need TWO SEATS PLEASE!"
The kids didn't get the message initially so Dwayne yelled in a much louder voice, showing them that he meant business.
When it was time for the handicapped passenger to unboard, two school kids delayed his exit. They stood at the front of the bus and the handicapped man had difficulty maneuvering his wheelchair. The boys obviously didn't know what to do until Dwayne told them to temporarily get off the bus. For considerate and caring folks, it would have been a most natural reaction, but obviously, the boys' attention were somewhere else!
After the children got off at their school, Dwayne and I couldn't help share our frustration. Are today's school children just plain RUDE, simply insensitive... or were they never taught any manners at home or in school? If those kids are representative of today's generation, we should be scared of what our country would be like when it's their time to lead.
Let's face it, the young ones belong to a generation of ears glued to their cell phones and plugged with electronic gadgets and fingers chained to text messaging. No wonder they often look sluggish and old before their time!
The other day, a middle school boy screamed, "BACK DOOR!" to Dwayne as he was getting off the bus. No "Please" or "Thank You" followed that command. I wouldn't be surprised if the bus driver felt like a glorified slave of that teenage boy.
If this kind of rude behavior from the young ones should continue to proliferate our society, there isn't much kindness, politeness and respect to be expected in the near future. It would be a very depressing reality should good manners become MIA (missing in action) in tomorrow's society.
It's a very sad statement of not only what the future holds, but of the prevalent lack of parenting skills.
"What's wrong with today's kids? They have no manners!"
He was very upset by an episode that happened that morning. A handicapped man was getting on the bus. School kids were occupying the seating area that was reserved for the elderly and disabled passengers.
Before Dwayne set down the ramp for the gentleman in the wheelchair, he politely requested the kids sitting in the disabled seating section to get up to make room for the passenger in the wheelchair. As soon as the students got up, another set of kids took their place on the vacated seats.
Dwayne screamed (a very unusual occurrence, mind you): "I need TWO SEATS PLEASE!"
The kids didn't get the message initially so Dwayne yelled in a much louder voice, showing them that he meant business.
When it was time for the handicapped passenger to unboard, two school kids delayed his exit. They stood at the front of the bus and the handicapped man had difficulty maneuvering his wheelchair. The boys obviously didn't know what to do until Dwayne told them to temporarily get off the bus. For considerate and caring folks, it would have been a most natural reaction, but obviously, the boys' attention were somewhere else!
After the children got off at their school, Dwayne and I couldn't help share our frustration. Are today's school children just plain RUDE, simply insensitive... or were they never taught any manners at home or in school? If those kids are representative of today's generation, we should be scared of what our country would be like when it's their time to lead.
Let's face it, the young ones belong to a generation of ears glued to their cell phones and plugged with electronic gadgets and fingers chained to text messaging. No wonder they often look sluggish and old before their time!
The other day, a middle school boy screamed, "BACK DOOR!" to Dwayne as he was getting off the bus. No "Please" or "Thank You" followed that command. I wouldn't be surprised if the bus driver felt like a glorified slave of that teenage boy.
If this kind of rude behavior from the young ones should continue to proliferate our society, there isn't much kindness, politeness and respect to be expected in the near future. It would be a very depressing reality should good manners become MIA (missing in action) in tomorrow's society.
It's a very sad statement of not only what the future holds, but of the prevalent lack of parenting skills.
