Where is my train?

It's winter, and I feel the Railway station has shifted to my front yard. It's been almost a year since I have travelled by train, but yeah, this train whistle is strongly reminding me of my all journies. And growing up watching "Jab we Met", this desire to take trains often gets robust.

 

I take the train with the high hope that I'll meet my Aditya this time, but I end up surrounded by Aditis, a couple and their kids, or the old aunties. (All thanks to IRCTC algorithm). But that doesn't stop me from taking trains every time, just not because I create sweet memories there but sitting by the window-side is not less than going on a vacation. Watching lush green fields and, if the season allows, yellow mustard fields and waterfalls which look like the white zigzag lines from the train. I have never been to the mustard field, but watching them from the train delights me. It activates my artistic brain, and if it's good enough, then words weave poems that I never remember once the journey ends. Listening to songs and the consistent noise of the train (then it feels like some music) witnessing the changing sky colours makes me a different person. It makes me forget who I am, makes me lighter and happier. 

It all started when I was in class 9th and then I had met a girl, We had a long conversation then, I told her about my dreams, and she told her story, she was a doctor, and she had met her boyfriend through Orkut. Now Orkut has totally disappeared though it was not much in trend, Facebook was. It was totally new to hear that you can meet your life partner through the internet. It's still going on, from meeting people working in different industries to the kids preparing for wrestling.

I don't travel often, but I have adorable stories to share. Once I had taken an impulsive trip, and as it was very impulsive, I hadn't made a reservation, but then also I stepped into the sleeper compartment and met with the Army serving couple. When I accidentally fell asleep on one of their seats, no one tried waking me up; instead, everyone shifted themselves to other seats (As it was the lower berth). I always get overwhelmed with people's kindness no matter where I go. Then we had good discussions from good old times to the modern era. The Army man who was then retired was really frustrated with today's generation, today's politics, telling me that today's generation doesn't know who the "P.V Narsimha Rao" is thankfully I knew. Also, I knew how GT Road was built, his words were bitter, but then I knew how frustrating it could be to think that your nation doesn't even recognise history when you are the one who battled on the border for this nation.

Sometimes even I exchanged numbers, and a few are still there on my phone. I have been told to stay away from strangers, but I do the opposite. For me, it's easy to get along with strangers than the known ones. Maybe because strangers carry no memories, we can forget ourselves with them. But, yeah, I love my home with no doubt. (Yeah, Vo musaafir hi kya jiska koi ghar na ho!)

The nostalgia of getting into a train is getting stronger nowadays. Whenever I think life would be beautiful now, I'll go on a few trips, I'll get into the train (or we), CoVID makes all the efforts to cancel it. I'm a strong supporter of  "It's the journey that matters, not the destination." After all, ain't our life is nothing but a journey?

I have relished each and every journey of mine, whether I missed my train and travelled in general or the ones when I just read the book and minded my own business. Periodically I had great discussions, and once in a while, I even encountered someone who fitted with "my idea of Aditya", but then his destination arrived sooner, and it always ended there :P. But nothing will ever break my relationship with trains. 

And who knows, someday I will meet my Aditya there and miss the train together. XD.

Till then 👋