This poem is dedicated to every man, woman and child traveling in the Mumbai local trains...
And also in memory of all those who died trying.
So you're all dressed up and ready
You step out into the sun
You're walking to the Railway station
Your greatest journey has begun.
The platform's filled with nameless faces
Some experienced, some new
Anywhere else, they could be friends
Here they're all competitors to you.
The crowd is growing by the second
Waiting for the train to show
And when it does - Hundreds clinging on to every door
Hundreds more on every window.
Logic says you cant do it
You tell yourself to stay aloof
And remain positive; just ignore
The people hanging on the roof.
A deep breath, and you plunge in
And you're rewarded with an inch of place
Fifeteen minutes later you're inside the train
Breaking all physical laws of space.
You envy the guy in front
And you envy the guy behind you.
They both seem to have a better place
To stand or hang on to.
Your one hand is searching for a holding place
Your other hand cant be seen
Someone steps on your toes at regular intervals
And punches you in between.
You still try to remain positive
Count your blessings from where you are.
Its an opportunity to see how good you could be
In situations of stress; like war.
A chance to see how loud you can scream
Test the limits of your voice
A chance to hear the latest insults
In the language of your choice.
To watch people act like animals on diet
Its your chance to wonder why
A chance to learn how to go to sleep
With an elbow in your eye.
A sudden halt, and your musings stop
Its time to make for the door
You squeeze out a way, an inch at a time
Just some hundred inches more.
Assure everyone behind you that you're
Getting down when the station arrives
But they insist on asking again, making sure
That you're forever leaving their lives.
And then just when you're beginning to think
You've reached the end of your ride
A cheerful voice announces that the
Platform's coming on the other side.
From the resulting chaos and madness
You somehow crawl out alive
Thanking every God known to you
That they let you survive.
And you swear that from that day on
You'll never even look at a train
But you know that tomorrow morning
You'll be doing it all over again.
GOD BLESS US ALL !!
And also in memory of all those who died trying.
So you're all dressed up and ready
You step out into the sun
You're walking to the Railway station
Your greatest journey has begun.
The platform's filled with nameless faces
Some experienced, some new
Anywhere else, they could be friends
Here they're all competitors to you.
The crowd is growing by the second
Waiting for the train to show
And when it does - Hundreds clinging on to every door
Hundreds more on every window.
Logic says you cant do it
You tell yourself to stay aloof
And remain positive; just ignore
The people hanging on the roof.
A deep breath, and you plunge in
And you're rewarded with an inch of place
Fifeteen minutes later you're inside the train
Breaking all physical laws of space.
You envy the guy in front
And you envy the guy behind you.
They both seem to have a better place
To stand or hang on to.
Your one hand is searching for a holding place
Your other hand cant be seen
Someone steps on your toes at regular intervals
And punches you in between.
You still try to remain positive
Count your blessings from where you are.
Its an opportunity to see how good you could be
In situations of stress; like war.
A chance to see how loud you can scream
Test the limits of your voice
A chance to hear the latest insults
In the language of your choice.
To watch people act like animals on diet
Its your chance to wonder why
A chance to learn how to go to sleep
With an elbow in your eye.
A sudden halt, and your musings stop
Its time to make for the door
You squeeze out a way, an inch at a time
Just some hundred inches more.
Assure everyone behind you that you're
Getting down when the station arrives
But they insist on asking again, making sure
That you're forever leaving their lives.
And then just when you're beginning to think
You've reached the end of your ride
A cheerful voice announces that the
Platform's coming on the other side.
From the resulting chaos and madness
You somehow crawl out alive
Thanking every God known to you
That they let you survive.
And you swear that from that day on
You'll never even look at a train
But you know that tomorrow morning
You'll be doing it all over again.
GOD BLESS US ALL !!
1 comment:
Do you still travel? I thought you got a room at hostel during internship!
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