A parent set out to investigate the reasons behind his daughter’s habit of staying in the school bus after other students had left. It was not what he had anticipated to find.

After she died, Benjamin Bruce, a single father, had to take on the role of mother to his child. Emily, their daughter, had been six years old at the time.

Ben cherished his daughter since, in his eyes, she was his only surviving spouse. He also assured her that Emily would always have his whole attention.

In light of this, Ben did his best to balance his career and his daughter’s needs. He was responsible for everything because he had no other family members he trusted to take care of her.

As a dad, the first few years were difficult for him, and things became much more chaotic when his daughter reached adolescence and he was still getting used to the rollercoaster.

Right before his eyes, she began to exhibit bodily changes, and he understood that these meant the lads will soon be after her. How could they not? His daughter had the enigmatic red hair and profound green eyes of his late wife.

Ben had been repeatedly taken in by her gaze over the years, so even he was not immune to her scrutiny. Two years after reaching puberty, at the age of twelve, Emily made the discovery of boys.

She aimed to impress her school crush, so she began meticulously grooming her hair and enhancing her beauty. Ben, on the other hand, was prepared to fend off any potential suitors with a stick if needed, but he was not equipped to manage his daughter’s newfound focus on her appearance.

Emily was forced to do it on her own, but as she had no one to emulate, she was awful at it. When she was younger, Ben would frequently just cut her hair short because he had no idea how to take care of it. However, as she grew older, he had to honor her desire to keep her hair longer.

He was a selfless father who would do everything for his daughter, so when her hair was long enough, he began brushing it. Despite his attempts to be compassionate, he was a huge man who occasionally let his guard down.

One day, she exclaimed, “Ouch!!!!”

He promptly said, “I’m sorry, baby,” like he always did.

Every now and again she would tell him, “Daddy, you need to be more gentle.”

At other times, she simply put up with the suffering because she didn’t want to let her father know how awful he was for creating it. Every time his daughter moaned about her hair falling out, Ben felt the pain of his failure and tried cutting her hair again.

Whenever they argued about her hair, he would often remark, “Why not just cut it all off? Your mother always kept her hair short and she looked amazing.”

She would counter, “Dad, I’m done cutting my hair. It’s growing so slowly because of how frequently you had me trim it before.” Ben never really won these discussions, but eventually, they stopped happening altogether.

Not long afterward, he observed that his daughter’s teacher, Mrs. Flynn, was sending out tardy notices. To find out, he gave the woman a call.

You’re correct, Mr. Bruce. This week alone, your daughter has received five tardiness notices. Is there something happening that I should be aware of? It was the woman who questioned him.

“Not much is happening. For a while now, everything has been going well at home, and I let her get on the bus early so that she may get to school before other kids,” he said.

“Did you notice anything going on with her this past week?” Ben queried.

“Well, one time I saw her get off the bus very late, even though she was supposed to be in class by then, since I was running late for class. Since only the driver has access to the bus at all times, the driver most likely has some knowledge of it.”

Ben said to Mrs. Flynn, “Thank you, I’ll get to the bottom of this,” and hung up.

The next day, Ben decided to follow his daughter, intrigued by her prolonged bus rides. He noticed that all the passengers, including his daughter, disembarked at the school, just as Mrs. Flynn had mentioned. Rushing onto the bus with a sense of urgency, Ben was relieved to find a gentle woman in her forties, named Madeline, tenderly brushing his daughter’s hair. Madeline was the bus driver.

The woman called out, “Mr. Bruce?” at his abrupt arrival as Emily looked up, startled to see her father.

“Daddy? Why are you in this place?”

Ben got up and said, “Hello ma’am,” clearing his throat. “Sorry about barging in, but I heard my daughter was getting tardy notices so I came to see why.”

The woman pointed to his daughter’s hair and remarked, “Oh, well in that case, here’s why.” “I noticed how she seemed to struggle with her hair so I offered to help her brush it every day before she goes to class because she says her rough hair often makes her feel bad.”

Ben said, “Honey,” to his daughter. “You never told me this.”

Emily argued, “I just didn’t want you to worry about it.”

Ben invited Madeline to coffee later that day. The bus driver broke down in tears when she learned what had happened to his wife.

Being a cancer survivor herself, she understood how fortunate she was to have survived and was appreciative of the fact that she could still support her own children.

Madeline urged Ben to seek a compromise that would be advantageous for his daughter, believing firmly that her survival was crucial for the children on the bus who relied on her for companionship, hairstyling, and other small but meaningful interactions.

In order to achieve this, Ben spoke with Emily’s teacher, Mrs. Flynn, and after addressing her concerns, Emily never received a tardy notice again. Madeline earned Ben’s gratitude, and the two of them were close friends for a very long time.

What lessons may we draw from this tale?

Never make snap judgments. Ben scared himself silly when he instantly assumed that his child and the bus driver were having an illicit relationship. If he hadn’t gone to the trouble of verifying it, things may have gone horribly wrong.

When you can, return the favor. Madeline felt he was saved from death so she could look after other children, so she did. She felt fulfilled and like she was giving back by taking care of those children, especially because she was able to make a difference in the lives of Ben and Emily.

Talk about this tale with your companions. It could motivate them and make their day better.