Hello hello! We have about one week left in Taiwan before we make it back to the United States. I would be lying if I said I didn’t miss a few things about the United States (like a good salad — the Taiwanese pretty much exclusively eat cooked vegetables). One thing I will NOT miss, however, is going back to driving my car. I wish the public transportation in Texas was convenient enough for me to use on a daily basis. In our Summer of Travels™ (you can read about our time in Taiwan here!), we have been on a looootttt of trains, which is what has inspired the poems I want to share with you today.
I get a thrill out of public transportation. Riding the metro just feels… human. People from all walks of life, all going to different places, all stuck in the same place together. Trains force us to confront humanity head-on in a way that individual cars do not. There are weird smells, and often, weird people.
In just one train ride, you’ll see: grandmas huddled together gossipping in a group of three; dozens wrapped up in their screens; a child ducking shyly behind their parents’ legs, catching the eye of a stranger pulling faces; businesswomen and men taking calls a little too loudly; sleeping travelers; a middle-aged man staring thoughtfully out the window; people asking for spare change; a girl writing in a cheap notebook (me) while observing people on the train (also me).
The two poems below both explore the connection (and sometimes disconnection) experienced on a train ride. The living, breathing connection between us all is something that fascinates me - it’s been on my mind a lot lately, which I explored in a recent newsletter. The first poem “The Subway: The Great Equalizer” emphasizes the simultaneous interrelatedness and chaos that is the New York City subway.
The second poem “A Girl Threw Up on the Train Today” is based on an incident I experienced at a train station in Italy. Public transit forces us, at times, to be confronted with uncomfortable, painfully human situations — ironically, throwing up is something nearly every human being has experienced, and yet it is so highly uncomfortable to witness. I watched many people turn from this girl in her moment of raw vulnerability - luckily Jonny was there to offer her the last of his water bottle (he’s a good one). I think many people want to change the world, but don’t realize that it is in the day-to-day moments of discomfort where positive change can happen.
Enjoy! I would love to hear your thoughts on your own experiences with humanity and trains in the comment section. <3
The Subway: the Great Equalizer
His MAGA pin catches sun and flashes red, startling
A pink backpack wearing a girl with braids, staring,
Marveling, eyes wide at a woman, six foot two, bold lips, starting
And stopping her music, swaying;
A man across the way is striking
A pose, vying
For the woman across his way to glance his way, stalling
Her; she misses the stop, standing
Two inches too far away, stifling
The sound of the conductor, a foreigner is straining
To hear what the subway is saying
Something about delaying
And the subway is stopping,
Trying the patience of MAGA man, stomping,
The backpack, recoiling,
Six foot two bold lips, boiling,
And the posing man, struggling
To catch the eye of the carefully
Placed woman, who is hoping she makes the next stop.
A Girl Threw Up on the Train Today
Onlookers gasped in disgust
Her slight fingers clutched her stomach
Purple veins bulging in her neck
Damp curls clinging to her cheeks
A pool of unuse slid this way and that way
With the course of the train
She sat there, alone,
Coated in her own
Shaking and shrinking
Passengers recoiled
And passed by on the other side
A child, eyes wide, mouth agape,
Pulled away by a doting mother –
A man, muttering to himself,
Turning his headphones up a few notches –
A doctor, pity in her eyes,
Tired from the day behind her –
Side glances disguised by double checking the next stop.
A few, internally,
wanted to help, but they were so busy
bumbling through their online hive,
bragging about who they hoped to be,
bickering about the brokenness
of modern society.
“Where did goodness go?” One texts a friend back home,
“Everyone here, just watching this girl,
Some even took videos,
People can be so cruel.”
Thanks for reading,
Kimber x
Oh that I could be a deep thinker!!