Shina Utavani

In a schoolyard, there were many bright, shiny new buses lined in a row. The buses would leave the schoolyard early morning to pick up the children for school. Children enjoyed in buses and happily travelled on the buses. In the afternoon, the buses would take them back to their homes.In the schoolyard, at the back, there was an old school bus that was hardly noticeable. The bus looked very old and was no longer shiny and bright. No driver was ready to ride that bus because it looked ugly. So, every morning the old bus sat there and watched as the other buses left to pick up the children. The bus left very bad that it did not go to pick the children as other buses did.One day, one of the bright, shiny buses would not start. The mechanic informed the principal that the bus was broken. It would take a few days to repair it. The principal was worried about how the children would reach school.The bus driver, Herb, spotted the old bus at the back in the schoolyard. The bus driver questioned, “Hey, how about if I try this old bus?” The principal wanted to provide transportation for the kids anyhow. So, he agreed. The driver quickly filled the fuel in the old bus and tried to start the bus. The bus chocked, coughed and sputtered. After some time, the bus finally started. The old bus shook as its engine came to life.Herb took the old bus out of the schoolyard to pick up the children. The driver was happy that the bus got started. He loved taking the kids for the school. He had been doing it since he retired from the factory. He liked his job. Herb had been pretty lonely since his wife passed away. He loved his job because the job kept him busy and made him feel better.First Herb picked up the little boy who lived on the East Street. Herb liked him, he always made people laugh. The boy entered the bus and said, “OH! The old bus is finally out of the schoolyard.” Herb laughed.Next, the old bus and Herb picked up a boy who lived on the Seventh Street. He was well mannered and behaved nicely with everyone. When he entered the bus, he said ‘Hello’ to everyone and everyone liked him. The driver then took off to pick other children. They picked the sisters from the Oak Street.Then, they went to pick another girl. Herb stopped the bus for the little girl. The girl used a wheelchair so Herb got out of the bus and picked up the girl on the bus. Herb put the wheelchair beside her carefully. The little girl’s name was Becky and she felt very embarrassed. She always felt that she was different. Herb tried to make her feel better. He said, “Each one of us is different in our way.” Becky said sadly, “You are not different.” To which Herb smiled and said, “Yes, I am. You see, every morning, I get up and brush my teeth and then I put them in my mouth.” He clacked his dentures together to demonstrate for her. Becky laughed out loud. She felt comfortable with Herb.The old school bus felt very good and proud to be carrying the children again. The bus felt very good when the children laughed and talked to each other. The bus did not care that it was not bright and shiny anymore. The bus was happy to carry the children again. The bus wished that it could carry children every day.Herb carried the children back to their homes in the evening. For the rest of the days, the old school bus and Herb carried the children to school and then dropped them back to their homes. Herb and the school bus both were very happy.The principal got a call from the school-board saying that they had hired a new driver for the bus. The Principal asked about Herb and they replied that it was time for Herb to retire. The principal did not want to fire Herb, and he did not think that Herb would want to retire. The principal got an idea. He went to meet Herb the next day.He conveyed the message to Herb. He was very shocked and surprised when he heard about the new driver. He said, “I guess that means I am fired.” The Principal said but we can do one thing. He said, “We are going to fix this old bus and convert it so that the handicapped children can get on and off easily. Would you drive this bus?” Herb’s eyes sparkled with joy and he gave the principal a big smile. He said, “Yes, sir. I will!”The old bus was repaired and made into a new one. Herb was happy to see the bus. He took out the bus from the schoolyard on the first run. It looked beautiful. Herb took the bus and went to pick up the children.This time, Becky got onto the bus easily because of the new facility. Herb lowered the special new chair lift and she easily entered the bus. Becky was very happy as she could enter the bus onto her own. She smiled happily.The old bus and Herb were also very happy. Herb drew the bus for a long time and he also never felt lonely because of the bus. Moral:All of us are unique in our own little ways. We should try to overcome our problems with the support of our loved ones.

This is a story of bus, driver, school and wheelchair.Moral(s) of the story: inclusivity, kindness and optimism

inclusivity stories

Kids moral stories help in improving their imagination & relate to real-world life. Here are age-specific bedtime stories for children by renowned storytellers.

The Lonely School Bus

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