Precious Cargo

Precious Cargo: My Year of Driving the Kids on School Bus 3077 by Craig Davidson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A memoir about connection, and the way the people you meet can have a deep impact on the person you become, regardless of what age you are when you meet them. As Jake says, "You meet people and your life gets its shape by the things that happen when you meet."

Craig had been at a low point in his life when he signed on to be a bus driver, but that decision would ultimately give him not only a year filled with joy, but the self-enlightenment to take a look at his life and change it for the better. He was pushed to step out of his comfort zone and the self-pity he'd been living in and try to reach his goals. At one point, Craig mentions that he's not as deeply satisfied with his life as he expected, but isn't that the way of things? Few things live up to your expectations, and much of the joy in life comes from continually chasing the goals set before you, and never giving up.

The kids Craig spent a year with had certainly faced challenges in their young lives. They were each both unique and also the same as any other kid. They inspired him, with both their own stories and dreams, to take a look at what he was writing and "tell the stories that lie nearest to your heart. That way they're not really fabrications at all. They're hopeful truths."

All the kids had their own endearing qualities, and because Craig loved them, I came to love them, too. Jake especially felt extremely mature for his age, and maybe that's the fact that he had already survived so much, and because he became like family to Craig.

It's sad to think that maybe Craig and Jake didn't spend as much time hanging out together once he wasn't a bus driver anymore, so I'm going to assume their relationship continued. Regardless, the fact remains that Jake and the other kids had a huge impact on Craig's life. As Craig says, "Time gets away from us. It rips some of our friends away. People come together, they fall apart. But what I've realized, and what I hope you understand, too, is this doesn't mean the memories go anywhere or are any less essential."

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