Bebe and Bullet’s Gift

by Carole Watters

This is a story about Bebe and Bullet and their amazing and magical encounter.

Bullet had quite a heritage.  He came from a long line of Bullets – the Mighty Bullets as they were called and they covered half the country.  For Bullet was a train – a high-speed train.

Bebe came from a more modest background – she was just a local gal you could say; her routes were in a small, rural town and just a little beyond.  For Bebe was a bus.

The Mighty Bullets were proud of their achievements – they prided themselves on getting to their destinations as quickly and efficiently as possible, with perfect timing. Competitions were held to see how quickly they could go and yet still arrive at the exact, precise time.

Bullet 145, the Bullet of our story, was no different from the others – at least to start with.  A sleek, gleaming red and silver train, he loved speeding half way across the country; he loved the achievement of arriving right on time, he loved the competitions; in short he loved his life and, like the Mighty Bullets before him, was proud of his accomplishments.  Week in and week out he sped along the tracks whizzing past stations – not for him to stop at local stations, only at major interchanges, where he would exchange quick greetings with the other Bullets.

It was at one of these local stations that Bebe the bus arrived every day.  In fact she would arrive just as Bullet raced passed.  It was the end of her route.  The little, green bus waited patiently outside the station to pick up the passengers from the local train.  She knew them all by name – and where they lived.  It was a friendly little place, her town.  She knew every shop, every building that lined her route.  She enjoyed the camaraderie of all the townsfolk.  The pace was slow and, if the town was a little sleepy, well it was her town and she was very fond of it.

Bullet’s passengers were a different breed, sitting behind newspapers, studiously studying the stock market, making urgent calls on their phones.  The very atmosphere breathed business deals.  There was an air of urgency and anticipation – and Bullet revelled in it.

Well, the years passed by with Bullet speeding across the country and Bebe going all round the houses, waiting patiently at bus stops.  Bullet’s passengers now had tablets, their phones had become smart and their business deals had become bigger.  Bebe’s passengers?  Well, they went on much the same as before.

Over time, both Bullet and Bebe began to feel a growing dissatisfaction with their lives.  Something wasn’t quite right.  Bullet began to feel life was passing him by – or rather he was passing life by for he was rushing so fast he couldn’t make out the scenery around him – it was all a blur.  He started wishing for the unthinkable – well for the Mighty Bullets it would have been unthinkable – that if he could just ..slow ..down ..a.. bit… He wondered what he was missing – what was outside all those stations he was speeding past?

And as for Bebe, well she was thinking ‘I’m so tired of stopping and starting, stopping and starting.  I never really get going’.  She would see Bullet race past each day and think ‘if only I could go fast like that – if only I could really go places’.

Now one day something very unusual happened.  Bebe arrived at the station, as she always did and was expecting to see Bullet whizz past.  But what she saw was Bullet slowing down and then coming to a complete stop.  She gazed at the gleaming red and silver train – and, as she continued to gaze, something rather remarkable happened.  Bebe began to feel quite different – as if she were streamlined and raring to go – and there on the ground before her she saw railway tracks and the distant horizon up ahead.  It was only for a few seconds but it made quite an impression on her.  What had happened?

Bullet wondered what had happened too  – he wondered why had he come to a stop at that station?  It was as if he couldn’t help himself but stop.  A week later it happened again – just as he was approaching the station, he felt himself slowing down and coming to a stop.  This time he saw the little green bus looking at him and he looked back.  And, as he looked back, something rather remarkable happened to him.  He felt himself becoming shorter, more relaxed.  And, instead of railway tracks ahead of him, he saw a road and, on either side of the road, there were people casually walking, smiling and greeting each other.  A few seconds later he was back to being himself.  What was going on?

Another week went by and then another without anything happening.  By then both Bebe and Bullet thought they had been imagining things.  But then, three weeks later, Bullet again felt himself coming to a stop at that same station.  And when he did, there was Bebe, the little green bus.  Bebe looked at Bullet and Bullet looked at Bebe and then it happened!  Bebe again began to feel quite different.  She was streamlined and raring to go – and this time she did!  She started speeding along the railway tracks, speeding further and further away from her home town.  She felt exhilarated.  Faster and faster she went whizzing past stations, rushing towards her destination halfway across the country.

Back in Bebe’s home town, something else had just happened.  Bullet had felt himself changing – becoming shorter, more relaxed – and then he found himself slowly moving off – along a road, going past shops and people, going so slowly, he was able to take in everything around him, to savour the scenery, to delight in a leisurely pace of living.

And then, just as suddenly as it had happened, Bebe and Bullet were back to being themselves again.  But what an experience they had both had – an experience they would never forget.  And, although it never happened again, in a way it did, because they both had the memory which they could relive – over and over again.  Each had given a gift to the other – and this gift didn’t stop there – it filtered through to their passengers.  The regulars that Bebe carried would alight from the bus feeling more positive, with a spring in their step and a ‘can do’ attitude.  The commuters that Bullet transported began to feel less driven, more relaxed; they started talking to each other.  Some felt they would like to take a vacation – and you might guess where they headed to – an up and coming little rural town that had a new spring in its step – all thanks to Bebe and Bullet.