Bus Camaraderie

Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tennessee

I went to a football game Saturday. This is not something I do... ever. Nonetheless, I had a fantastic time (Shout-out to my roommate who patiently explained every play for me). Even better, our team won!

I live close to campus and my apartment complex sends out a bus on game days. For that I am thankful. Otherwise we'd be spending next semester's tuition on a parking spot. Many dedicated football fans flock to the stadium every week. Thus, our bus gets filled to the brim. When my roommate and I rode over to campus, there were only a few students on the bus. After the game, the bus was as packed as I'd ever seen it. We had people sitting on laps and standing in the middle, squished like sardines. Overfilled was an understatement. There on that hot, crammed bus full of strangers and stuck in traffic, we were all in it together. 

There was no music playing in the bus that day, nor was there any air conditioning. Everything could be heard by everyone and the next half hour became a group conversation. A kind man gave me his seat next to his significant other who later told me about her child and teased about going into labor with her second on the bus ride home. Some bonded over learning how to open the windows and reminiscing over middle school bus rides.One girl asked if anybody needed a roommate. We sat in traffic on the train tracks and hoped to heaven we would all make it across. Any time the bus creaked, which was very often, we gasped a little and crossed our fingers in hopes that the tires had not yet popped. On the final stretch home, we braved he speed-bumps like champions. We even clapped for the bus driver when we made it home! 

I doubt we will see each other again, but there for about thirty minutes, we were all friends.

It might seem like a weird thing for me to share with you, but it truly filled my heart knowing that people can bond so quickly over small things, even if it is just for a moment. I read this quote once that states, "Strangers are just friends waiting to happen." I love this philosophy. It's a mindset that opens your heart to making friends in weird places for weird reasons. These friendships could last years, sometimes they last minutes. They are all beautiful. I hope this experience of bus ride camaraderie reminds me to be present in those moments of minute long friendship. I think we can learn a lot that way.