My grandmother’s dentures would begin grinding, her breaths would come in short gasps, as the steam engine chugged, puffed and shrieked its way onto the station platform. Having lived all her life, in the placid village, where even throwing a stone in the holy pond would create news,the bustle and excitement of the train journey would be too much of a stressor for her. I remember tightly holding her hand, even as the crowd swelled, churned and hustled around us.
His shirt billowing, my father would rush ahead of us to secure us berths/seats, despite there being a pass ( railway employee’s dependents’) for all of us. The madness lasted for precisely five minutes, the stoppage time for the train on the remote station.
Once, we were all aboard, we could breathe a sigh of relief, as the train pulled out of the station, blasting its horns into rice fields with lush crop that swayed, and regained their composure, unimpressed and unruffled.
His shirt billowing, my father would rush ahead of us to secure us berths/seats, despite there being a pass ( railway employee’s dependents’) for all of us. The madness lasted for precisely five minutes, the stoppage time for the train on the remote station.
Once, we were all aboard, we could breathe a sigh of relief, as the train pulled out of the station, blasting its horns into rice fields with lush crop that swayed, and regained their composure, unimpressed and unruffled.
Oh yes.... the rush of adrenaline as the train pulls into the station is indescribable........especially if it's a small station and the train is gonna make a short stop. Never felt the same on an aeroplane
ReplyDeletethanks jiji
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