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Once there was a girl called Valliammai.  Just like every child, Valli was eager to know about new and unknown things because of which she could spend all day looking at the hustle and bustle of the street. Moreover, she had no friends to play with, so the only option she has is to look at what is going on outside.

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The most fascinating thing of all was the bus that travelled between her village and the nearest town. It passed through her street each hour, once going to the town and once coming back. The sight of the bus, filled each time with a new set of passengers, was a source of unending joy for Valli.

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Even though she couldn’t play with friends, looking at the outside affairs was just as entertaining. She learned a lot of new things in the process and the best part was the arrival and departure of the bus that routed from her village to a nearby town. The bus crossed the village street at hourly intervals, once while going to the town and the other, while coming back. Just gazing at the bus filled with a new set of passengers every time it crossed the street, gave Valli lasting excitement and joy.

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If one of her friends happened to ride the bus and narrate the experiences to her, she would call them," Proud, Proud."

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She made plans over the days to collect the needed money and fixed a time to get out.

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Valli held out a few coins and told the conductor that she had to go to town

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The conductor, amused, jokingly referred to her as "madam" and asked everyone to make way for her.

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Valli wanted to see the view outside,but a blind blocked her view.
So she stood up to take in the green grass lands , the palm trees, mountains and the blue sky .

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An elderly woman sat down next to her
Valli didn't like her earrings nor her breath which smelled of betel juice
When the woman told to her that it wasn't proper for a child to travel alone Valli retorted that she could take care of herself

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She had to resist every temptation to buy peppermints, toys, balloons and finally saved a total of sixty paise.

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She had to slip out of the house without her mother's knowledge. Every day after lunch her mother would nap from one to four or so. Valli had used these hours for her usual excursions, and even for the bus ride.

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The bus rolled on now cutting across a bare landscape, now rushing through a tiny hamlet or past an odd wayside shop.  Trees came running towards them but then stopped as the bus reached them and simply stood there helpless for a moment by the side of the road before rushing away in the other direction.

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A young cow, tail high in the air, was running very fast, right in the middle of the road, right in front of the bus. The bus slowed to a crawl, and the driver sounded his horn loudly again and again. But the more he honked, the more frightened the animal became and the faster it galloped — always right in front of the bus.

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She laughed and laughed until there were tears in her eyes. “Hey, lady, haven’t you laughed enough?” called, the conductor. “Better save some for tomorrow.”

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The bus reached the shopping street and Valli gaped at everything in wonder. Everyone got off the bus but Valli.

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“Hey, lady,” said the conductor, “aren’t you ready to get off? This is as far as your thirty paise takes you.” “No,” Valli said, “I’m going back on this same bus.”
The conductor was surprised that she didn't want to see the different scenic sights. He even offered to buy her a cold drink but she refused.

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Won’t your mother be looking for you?”  the conductor asked when he gave the girl her ticket. “No, no one will be looking for me,” she said.

The bus started, and again there were the same wonderful sights.

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But suddenly she saw a young cow lying dead by the roadside, just where it had been struck by some fast-moving vehicle.

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“Isn’t that the same cow that ran in front of the bus on our trip to town?” she asked the conductor.

The conductor nodded, and she was overcome with sadness. What  had  been  a  lovable, beautiful creature  just  a  little  while  ago  had  now  suddenly lost its charm and its life and looked so horrible, so

frightening as it lay there, legs spreadeagled, a fixed stare in its lifeless eyes,  blood all over...

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She sat thus, glued to her seat until the bus reached her village at three forty. She stood up and stretched herself and proceeded to walk home, promising the conductor to see him again.

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When she entered her house she found her mother awake and talking to one of Valli’s aunts, the one from South Street.
“And where have you been?” said her aunt when Valli came in. She spoke very casually, not expecting a  reply.  So  Valli  just  smiled,  and  her  mother  and aunt  went  on  with  their  conversation. “Yes,  you’re  right,”  her mother  said.  “So  many things  in  our  midst  and  in  the  world  outside.  How

can  we  possibly  know  about  everything?  And  even

when  we  do  know  about  something,  we  often  can’t

understand  it  completely,  can  we?

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“Oh,  yes!”  breathed  Valli. “What?” asked her mother. “What’s that you say?”

“Oh,”  said  Valli,  “I  was  just  agreeing  with  what you  said  about  things  happening  without  our knowledge.”

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Just a chit of a girl, she is,” said her aunt, “and yet look how she pokes her nose into our conversation,just  as  though  she  were  a  grown  lady.”

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Valli smiled  to  herself.  She  didn’t  want  them  to understand her smile. But, then, there wasn’t much chance  of  that,  was  there?