The dark night was to be a constant, beautiful and featureless companion while the train slid past, leaving behind almost everything; something that i can do easily too when sitting in a window seat, looking opposite to the direction of travel. The trees flew backwards as I lay below a star studded blanket with pupils stretched out supine and relaxed.
The occasional light on a pole at a railway crossing streaked past like a bright comet, burning my eyes, and blinding me. As my eyesight returned, smaller and dimmer lights a little farther away from the track streaked slowly past.
The train took a turn, quite quickly. I propped myself up on my elbows and looked outside and caught a glimpse of the entire train 'behind' me. Being a completely air conditioned train, the symmetry was perfect - all rectangular windows with no people/objects silhouetted against them. Just several solid, regular rectangular boxes of light. While the train negotiated the turn, the lights of the tiny town floated away outside at different speeds depending on how far they were from the track.
In one joyously enriching vision, i saw the train as a giant skyscraper on its side, with me looking out of one of its windows, sliding across cities; a feeling that the train was at the centre of the world with smaller cities flashing across and revolving around it.
While the trees flew past, the stars appeared stationary, but also seemed to be guided by me, following me till day came.
It all became clear when i peeped above the stupid, hazy ceiling of light pollution that comes free these days.
There is something about the train journeys..they are always so enriching..!!
ReplyDeletesurely! A train journey at night and through the countryside is unbeatable..we can see the awesome sky at length, for hours. I wonder how a night flight would reveal the stars - if only the aircraft was very dark from the inside so that we could avoid the glare on the windows.
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