To the people on the bus

Dear people on the bus who sit at the front and don't need to,

Pretending not to see the little old lady who was super stooped get on the bus is pretty lame. Pretending not to see her once she's on the bus (ie looking the other way, at the ground, closing your eyes, fiddling with your MP3 player/cellphone) is even more lame.

Dear people on the bus standing at the front,

Not getting out of the way of the little old lady mentioned above when she's trying to sit down, after the bus driver asked you to move, you're lame too. It wouldn't hurt you to squish up for a minute or give her hand as support.

Dear both groups of people,

You never know when you might be the one that needs the courtesy seats. I figured it would be years before I would need to sit there, but last year I spent a good number of months needing to sit up there because I walked slower than a snail who had molasses for breakfast, I carried a cane and for a good amount of time, I was sore. I know it can be a long way from where you get on to where you get off and standing for that long can be uncomfortable, but if you're able, get up...those people who are injured, frail, sick, dependent on a cane or other device to get around often also might not have the strength or the stability to ride the bus standing up, even for a couple of stops.