From Bellevue, Washington: "A Bus Meditation," by Claire Petersky

One day, I got on a crowded bus and took the one seat that was available in the front. It was only after sitting down that I saw the reason the seat was empty: two guys, both with some sort of mental problems (neurological, developmental, or psychiatric, I don't know), who were sitting up there talking to each other across the aisle in a loud and disturbing way.

Once I noticed them, it was too late to get up and hunt for another seat in the back of the bus without it's being really obvious why I was moving. So I figured, Here I am, make the best of it. (Read more here.)