A simple addition to a Florida driveway has made one student’s mornings a little brighter—and inspired more kindness throughout her neighborhood.
Teachers Maren and David Douglass learned that a middle schooler had been assigned a bus stop at the end of their driveway. After seeing her sit on the ground while she waited, they put out a bench. Maren told People that the girl jumped when she discovered it: “It was just the cutest reaction, her little jumps—and it just got sweeter from there.”
The student soon left a note of thanks: “Hello, this is from the kid that waits for the bus at your house. Thank you so much for putting that bench there! Now I don’t have to worry about dirt and bugs, I appreciate it a ton!”
Encouraged by her response, the Douglasses added a small free library beside the bench and filled it with books. Other children in the neighborhood have begun borrowing and returning them, too. The student later left flowers for Maren—a lovely return gesture in a friendship that began with a place to sit.
