On a  Friday morning, I was awaiting at the usual bus stop which took me to school every week.

 

However, this Friday morning was different than any other time where I have sat and waited at this stop.

 

As I was waiting, an elderly man came into the bus shelter to wait on the bus. While in the process of standing up to offer my seat, he waved me down and in his Scottish accent said,” don’t bother, I’ve been sitting long enough.”

 

As I began to retake my seat, he continued to carry on a conversation with me by commenting on how familiar my face was to him. Which baffled me seeing as I had only recently moved to the area. He then began to to tell me about how his grandson doesn’t know what to do with his life even though the rest of the family has been trying to lead him in the direction of join the Ontario police academy. After, he asked me what it was I am studying and I had told him that I was taking the child and youth care program at Fleming College. He began to smile when after I said this.

 

When the bus came, I chose to sit beside him and continue our conversation. He then disclosed to me that he was a war veteran and stated to explain how he likes to take the time to talk to the youth when he can. He said that we wanted to hear about what they had planned for their future’s since he fought for our right to do so.

 

Now, usually when the elderly cross the same path as me, they like to look the other way and ignore my presence even when I smile at them politely. Or, they like to look at for long periods of time while they clutch their bags while I pass. I’m not sure if this is a result of fear because I’m a youth in general or, the fact that I’m a black youth residing I’m a dominantly white neighbourhood. Either way, I’ve learned the consequences that follows when a white person fears a black youth and they are more fatal for one than the other.

 

Which is why it was really refreshing to finally have a conversation with someone who didn’t fear me and, actually saw me how I wish to be seen. As a human.

 

Despite what I’ve stated earlier, I still believe there are those who refuse to let the fear of differences or their own biases stop them from engaging with others in positives ways. Even with the recent change in American leadership which proved to the world exactly how many people still feared those who are different.

Draft 2

With all the bad and the evil that has been done to others, I still believe that there is goodness within people. While there has been much stigma towards groups of people, there are still those who refuse to let stigma affect how they treat another human being.

On a  Friday morning, I was awaiting at the usual bus stop which took me to school every week.However, this Friday morning was different than any other time where I have sat and waited at this stop.

As I was waiting, an elderly man came into the bus shelter to wait on the bus. While in the process of standing up to offer my seat, he waved me down and in his Scottish accent said,” don’t bother, I’ve been sitting long enough.”

As I began to retake my seat, he continued to carry on a conversation with me by commenting on how familiar my face was to him. Which baffled me seeing as I had only recently moved to the area. He then began to to tell me about how his grandson doesn’t know what to do with his life even though the rest of the family has been trying to lead him in the direction of join the Ontario police academy. After, he asked me what it was I am studying and I had told him that I was taking the child and youth care program at Fleming College. He began to smile after I said this.

When the bus came, I chose to sit beside him and continue our conversation. He then disclosed to me that he was a war veteran and stated to explain how he likes to take the time to talk to the youth when he can. He said that we wanted to hear about what they had planned for their future’s since he fought for our right to do so.

Now, usually when the elderly cross the same path as me, they like to look the other way and ignore my presence even when I smile at them politely. Or, they like to look at for long periods of time while they clutch their bags while I pass. I’m not sure if this is a result of fear because I’m a youth in general or, the fact that I’m a black youth residing I’m a dominantly white neighbourhood. Either way, I’ve learned the consequences that follows when a white person fears a black youth and they are more fatal for one than the other.

Which is why it was really refreshing to finally have a conversation with someone who didn’t fear me and, actually saw me how I wish to be seen. As a human.

Despite what I’ve stated earlier, I still believe there are those who refuse to let the fear of differences or their own biases stop them from engaging with others in positives ways. Even with the recent change in American leadership which proved to the world exactly how many people still feared those who are different.

Final Draft

With all the bad and the evil that has been done to others, I still believe that there is goodness within people. While there has been much stigma towards groups of people, there are still those who refuse to let stigma affect how they treat another human being.

On a  Friday morning, I was awaiting at the usual bus stop which took me to school every week.However, this Friday morning was different than any other time where I have sat and waited at this stop.

As I was waiting, an elderly man came into the bus shelter to wait on the bus. While in the process of standing up to offer my seat, he waved me down and in his Scottish accent said,” don’t bother, I’ve been sitting long enough.”

As I began to retake my seat, he continued to carry on a conversation with me by commenting on how familiar my face was to him. Which baffled me seeing as I had only recently moved to the area. He then began to to tell me about how his grandson doesn’t know what to do with his life even though the rest of the family has been trying to lead him in the direction of join the Ontario police academy. After, he asked me what it was I am studying and I had told him that I was taking the child and youth care program at Fleming College. He began to smile after I said this.

When the bus came, I chose to sit beside him and continue our conversation. He then disclosed to me that he was a war veteran and started to explain how he likes to take the time to talk to the youth when he can. He said that we wanted to hear about what they had planned for their future’s, since he fought for our right to do so.

Now, usually when the elderly cross the same path as me, they like to look the other way and ignore my presence even when I smile at them politely. Or, they like to look for long periods of time while they clutch their bags as I pass. I’m not sure if this is a result of fear because I’m a youth in general or, the fact that I’m a black youth residing in a dominantly white neighbourhood. Either way, I’ve learned the consequences that follows when a white person fears a black youth and they are more fatal for one than the other.

Which is why it was really refreshing to finally have a conversation with someone who didn’t fear me and, actually saw me how I wish to be seen. As a human.

Despite what I’ve stated earlier, I still believe there are those who refuse to let the fear of differences or their own biases stop them from engaging with others in positives ways. Even with the recent change in American leadership which proved to the world exactly how many people still feared those who are different.