Dear Paul Mahoney

Dear Paul Mahoney, I bet you're surprised to see your real name on the internet. True, I usually follow my own rat rule in these things, which can be summed up in the words "first, do no harm". The thing is, they are not releasing the name of the bus driver who abandoned the little girl on the side of a road. They released the name of the little girl, sure. Branded her a victim for life. No harm there. Well, I gave that some thought. And I realized, I could counter the dark corner of secrecy by outing YOU. I hope you don't mind. You are a real person, and you did something noble at an age when nobility and kindness are almost out of reach. I thought that deserved the credit of your own name. You won't know me by this name. So let me help you. You went to Jr. High school in Fairfield County, Connecticut during the late 70's. Your house was second to the end of a long bus route, kind of in the woods, and for the last 15 minutes each day it was just you and me. You were popular. You looked like a young Paul McCartney, a little. You were comfortable in your skin, with a quick sense of humor and a big heart. You were known for being a flirt, but a good guy. You were into music, and as soon as the bus was a little emptied you'd convince the bus driver to turn up the radio. I thought you were the coolest person I knew. Conversely, I was pretty beat up. The kids bullied me something fierce for a while. Over the months, it softened to a dull roar; I made a few friends and had someone to each lunch with. But I hated school, Paul. Counted the days in between the holidays. At the beginning of the year, you were strictly a "back of the bus" guy and I was at the front. I would curl up behind the bus driver for safety. You'd expand, somehow. Taking up the entire bench seat with your arms and legs and white smile. One day, in the crisp end of autumn, you yelled to me. It took you a week to convince me that it was all right for me to move to the back of the bus once it was just us and the driver. You were a bit of the firefly, you liked the attention. You liked having someone to talk to. You made me laugh. I had girls in my life. Neighbors, cousins, girlfriends at school. I'd had crushes. But you were the first guy to ever hold a conversation with me without your mother forcing the relationship. Did I mention you made me laugh, Paul? You used to use your hands to tell the stories. I never saw so much happy personality tied up in so much testosterone before. I wrote about you in my diary. Then I destroyed the pages because I had no privacy back then. But I didn't forget your name. One day, in the spring, someone had really gotten to me. I couldn't face you, because I was crying. Huddled behind that chain-smoking bus driver, staring doggedly out a window that only opened from on top, and pretending not to notice that my cheeks were chapped. And wet. You tapped me on the shoulder, and I still couldn't face you. You'd moved. To the front of the bus. For me. And it only made things worse. You said "Come on, now". You said "What's wrong?" You sat behind me. Until it was time for you to get off. The next morning, you got on. You took my hand and led me to the back of the bus. You sat me against the window and took the aisle. And as the stops piled up, and disbelieving kids punched your shoulder, and you didn't move from my side until we got to school. Then you silently exited, melding into your crowd. So for a few weeks until school ended, I sat at the back. Everyday. With you. No one said a word. That was a lot of power you had in the Darwinian ooze of adolescent political structure. Why were you so kind? I guess it doesn't matter anymore but at the time, it mattered a lot. It was a domino that got knocked in the right direction, and my life was better for it. The last day of school, you squeezed my hand and didn't look back. You said goodbye to the driver. I never knew what happened to you. I always kind of wondered. Dear Paul Mahoney, You were the only good thing that ever happened to me on a bus. I hope you're having a splendid life. Thank you.