New York City bus operator Ronald Ruiz remembers one of his passengers on the City Island line in the Bronx.
Originally aired February 25, 2005, on This American Life.
Broadcast July 15, 2005, on NPR’s Morning Edition.
Transcript
Ronald Ruiz (RR)
RR: I remember one woman in particular, a senior, who had gotten on my bus, and she seemed completely lost. I could see she was confused. I don’t know whether it was an illness, but she looked so beautiful. For a hot summer day to have her fur on… So I said, Are you okay? And she said, I’m fine. I’m fine, but I don’t know what restaurant I’m meeting my friends. I said, You sit on the bus, I’ll run in, and I’ll check each restaurant. The very, very last one on the left, I said, It’s got to be this one.
So I said, Stay here sweetie, it’s nice and cool in here. I went in and said, There’s a lady on the bus, and she’s not sure the restaurant. And I saw a whole bunch of other seniors there and they said, Oh it’s probably her!
So, I ran back to the bus. I said, Sweetie, your restaurant is right here. And I said, No, no, don’t move. And I grabbed her hand. I remember my right hand grabbed her right hand. I wanted to make her feel special, like it’s a limousine it’s a bus.
She said she felt like Cinderella. And she said, I’ve been diagnosed with cancer, and today is the best day of my life. Just because I helped her off the bus. And I never forgot that woman.