"Nellie is at the Cram's house!!!" my sisters would yell as our bus driver approached our house. It was the queue to get out the door and down to the end of our driveway so we wouldn't miss the school-bus.
Nellie was amazing. If we were running late, she would kindly beep for us. Or if our dog tried to chase the bus, she would simply smile. And if we were grumpy, she greeted us with a smile and a cheery hello with a Dutch accent.
Years after I took my last bus ride, I discovered Nellie drove bus more for fun than for money. She and her husband ran a prosperous farm in Upstate New York.
Nellie's now gone. I drove by her house last year and began to cry as I thought how she loved a long-haired brat. She was a friend to EVERYONE on the bus, even the trouble-makers like me.
Nellie's lasting legacy isn't her money nor her farm. Not the popularity. No, Nellie was a saint. She loved like Mother Teresa!
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