Brian O’Connor

Meeting Brian is so sublime

Unlike meeting of any kind.

He’s great & kind, respectable & admirable

For all his senior passenger, he’s adorable

Transperth buses could do with more guys like him

Each day in service he fails not to sing!

It was such a beautiful sunny Spring day on Wednesday, 10 October 2012 that I couldn’t resist the temptation of being outdoor. So I decided to take the bus to meet up with a couple of buddies at Satay Mu Restaurant in Kardinya for lunch.

My hour bus ride to Perth City is usually boring & seemingly long. That day was different – different because of Brian. He was greeting almost all his senior passengers of Kalamunda, chatting & engaging with them. Conversation held . . . laughter felt. Smile gleamed . . . atmosphere brightening. Time just slipped you by when you have fun.

I learnt a few things about him. Coming from South Africa, he has worked & lived in Perth more years than he’s been in Africa. Of some Anglo-Saxon descent, he’s fluent & eloquent like a typical English gentleman. He plays golf in his leisure time & rightly to be living in the enchanted valley of Araluen. He loves to travel & does possess a world of knowledge as reflected in his engaging dialogue.

He wasn’t driving that day as he was instructing & familiarising Persely in the finer points of their Eastern Bus Route. Persely is new to Perth, having arrived as a new migrant only 6 weeks ago from Britain.

You wonder what kind of a working day Brian would normally have. Here, if I may quote from the horse’s mouth:

“My apologies for the late reply but this week has been a very testing one, both mentally and physically. I’ve been going to bed at 8.30 pm every night totally drained and exhausted.

The highlight of our week was getting to meet a very interesting person like yourself and a few of my regular senior passengers whom I enjoy chatting to. It’s days like this that I’ll cherish where a few giggles are shared and we as human beings are mindful and respectful of each other regardless of race , colour, creed or social standing.

I try to do my job as best as I can, even though some can be extremely challenging & dissatisfying, I wonder wether I’ve made the right choice in choosing this career path towards my retirement, but then you experience a senior citizen who is courteous and overwhelmed with gratitude after you’ve just set her down closer to home and this is easier on those 95 year old legs that have taken her on many journeys. It’s days like this that makes all the others seem trivial, even as recent as 24 hours ago.

So if that day was the first and last that we met Paul, I’m pleased and glad that we did. I shall continue to read your blog site and be inspired by your literature.”

IT’S NOT IMPORTANT WHAT WE DO IN LIFE

THE IMPORTANT THING IS THAT WE ARE DOING IT WELL!

Keep it up

You’re doing a great job!