The surface of the sea breaks as the diver in the depths rises to take a breath. There are no accidents. Air rushes into the body. A right attitude is assumed and carries you forward. Kindness is a blessing that you have found and provided to readers the opportunity to be with you on your journey.
What an amazing story, Priya. I think it was magic—the woman breaking her silence at the exact moment, the train’s emergence at the perfect time and the unlikelihood of that. I tend to call those moments luck versus magic. Mine happen on longer term issues—meeting the friend who turns you on to a great job, or being picked up on the side of the road in Mexico by the man who would command your fate by selling you a parcel of land in a foreign country that would become your home. Do we put ourselves in those positions? Or were they pre/ordained? In essence, your trip was not really upturned bc the finale of it had the exact same outcome—nearly to the minute!! But for the ride on the wrong train, so oddly, but that it all ended right. Quite the mind blower. Let us know if you find the seam! (And what if you’d not taken THAT seat)? So many if’s. Wonderful things to contemplate. Thanks for another Sunday morning mindbender, haha. Love it!
Jeanine, there were so many ways it could’ve played out. I feel that same feeling when I read your stories, especially the hurricane chapter and how one house was affected and not another. It’s probably just random, but it makes you wonder. Thanks, Jeanine, I appreciate your reading my work!
You’re right Priya. It was magic.And sadly for Alejandro when his caretaker’s house shaped asa pyramid remained and Alejandro’s-lost to the elements. But you have not yet been given the ending, and Alejandro’s karma wasn’t too shabby in the end of the end. Stay tuned!
Priya, this was such a lovely and enchanting read for a Sunday afternoon! I was so pulled into the story and eager to find out what happened next. I have to admit, a part of me was really curious about what magic of a different kind might have unfolded had you stayed on the train that went north - there was such a touch of mystery and magic about the way you described that! I absolutely love how you've written about going in search of the seam between worlds - very synchronistically, I've recently been daydreaming and journalling a lot about my lifetime fascination with the meeting point of two worlds, starting from the books I was drawn to reading as a child. I've always found myself drawn to those times of the day like twilight and midnight where the veil is thinnest between two worlds - as manifested in time travel, parallel worlds, and the meeting of visible and invisible worlds. I'm sure I'm going to be doing a lot more creating around these themes soon. It's such a pleasure to have been further inspired by your piece!
Yes, all the ways the magic could have happened! So much of what fascinates me are these thresholds between worlds, past and future, etc. I look forward to reading your work on these themes! Thank you for reading and for sharing, Suyin!
Great writing! I love how you detailed the moment synchronicity intersected your path, facilitating the correction. The stranger's decision to greet and question you was perfectly timed... how she could sense that you were in need of assistance--for me--cuts to the essence of our connectedness. Had she sensed this need and remained quiet would've demonstrated our isolation and denial of a collective consciousness.
Thank you for sharing this incident so beautifully. Those shadings in our perceived color of water always intrigue me. Perhaps other beings see different parts of the light spectrum and observe the shadings of our energetic being. I suspect my cat and dog look at me and understand things happening in my being that I'm unaware of... perhaps the fellow traveler could see deeper into you than you could.
Richard, it was another one of those disorienting incidents when you are in the middle of something that doesn’t quite add up with logic alone. I hadn’t thought of interconnectedness as much as I thought of trajectory- a kind of what’s supposed to happen (you can see my fatalism here) in order for the next pre-ordained domino to fall. Maybe someone else needed to take that seat and I had to hop off! Thanks for reading and for sharing your thoughts! Appreciate it!
Nope, I didn’t tell anybody except the internet now! I would’ve gotten an earful on carelessness from everyone though probably not from my grandfather who, knowing how easily I got intimidated, tended to shield me from others. It was a shock to me and it took me awhile to process it. I’ve had other train-related experiences (e.g. once I overslept and missed the station I had to get down at, and that’s a famous family anecdote) so trains, waiting rooms, railway stations are favorite sources of inspiration. Thank you, Reena, for reading!
Hi Priya, I remember reading this when you first shared it, however, for me, there is a different feel to it now... a sense of investigation into "The logical part of me will announce sternly that I was lucky the stranger asked me where I was going at just the right time while the older, more fanciful part, steeped as it is in ancient cultural and family legends, will wonder what magic made her do that."
And I would offer that what you're calling your more 'fanciful' part, is perhaps a part of yourself that recognizes the mystical, the unseen, the spiritual aspect of life. For me, this always points towards the Pierre Teilhard de Chardin quote, "We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience."
And yet I also have a very rational, logical part that is very grounded in our material, physical world, that can "explain" things like your story - the woman could have noticed that you were a young and inexperienced student traveller who looked like she didn't know where she was going or what she was doing, and perhaps she had witnessed a situation like that before on that train, and she thought she'd save you the trouble of going to the wrong place.
Maybe it's all true. Maybe that's what our human species is moving towards - being able to embrace BOTH the rational and the mystical. May it be so❤️🙏🕊️
Camilla, thank you for reading! I agree- embracing both seems to be the answer. I grew up surrounded almost completely by mysticism and it’s only as I’ve gotten older that I remember to insert a dose of rationale. Always great having these conversations with you!
This is such a wonderful essay. I love how you describe that moment of “coincidence.” Amazing how many of those moments there are when I’m paying attention.
LeeAnn, thank you for reading! I agree, it’s probably more times than we notice. For me, the growing has been in allowing room for logic. When this happened, I believed that it was sheer magic. It’s only in retrospect that I can poke holes and apply some logic.
I remember reading the shorter version of this story last time and thinking about how that lady seemed to be one of those people who come along just when we need them. Rational or magical many people seem to have these experiences and I think that speaks to the often hard to perceive interconnectedness of everything. :)
This was such a lovely read, Priya! I can’t imagine the terror of finding yourself on the wrong train, potentially stranded at the station of a small city, wondering if you’d get on the right train.
Wow. Goosebumps! Something in the ether intervened right when it counted. Love when that happens.
Thanks for reading, Uthara! Yes, definitely something happened there!
The surface of the sea breaks as the diver in the depths rises to take a breath. There are no accidents. Air rushes into the body. A right attitude is assumed and carries you forward. Kindness is a blessing that you have found and provided to readers the opportunity to be with you on your journey.
Thank you, Richard, as always! “There are no accidents” is almost an incantation!
What an amazing story, Priya. I think it was magic—the woman breaking her silence at the exact moment, the train’s emergence at the perfect time and the unlikelihood of that. I tend to call those moments luck versus magic. Mine happen on longer term issues—meeting the friend who turns you on to a great job, or being picked up on the side of the road in Mexico by the man who would command your fate by selling you a parcel of land in a foreign country that would become your home. Do we put ourselves in those positions? Or were they pre/ordained? In essence, your trip was not really upturned bc the finale of it had the exact same outcome—nearly to the minute!! But for the ride on the wrong train, so oddly, but that it all ended right. Quite the mind blower. Let us know if you find the seam! (And what if you’d not taken THAT seat)? So many if’s. Wonderful things to contemplate. Thanks for another Sunday morning mindbender, haha. Love it!
Jeanine, there were so many ways it could’ve played out. I feel that same feeling when I read your stories, especially the hurricane chapter and how one house was affected and not another. It’s probably just random, but it makes you wonder. Thanks, Jeanine, I appreciate your reading my work!
You’re right Priya. It was magic.And sadly for Alejandro when his caretaker’s house shaped asa pyramid remained and Alejandro’s-lost to the elements. But you have not yet been given the ending, and Alejandro’s karma wasn’t too shabby in the end of the end. Stay tuned!
Priya, this was such a lovely and enchanting read for a Sunday afternoon! I was so pulled into the story and eager to find out what happened next. I have to admit, a part of me was really curious about what magic of a different kind might have unfolded had you stayed on the train that went north - there was such a touch of mystery and magic about the way you described that! I absolutely love how you've written about going in search of the seam between worlds - very synchronistically, I've recently been daydreaming and journalling a lot about my lifetime fascination with the meeting point of two worlds, starting from the books I was drawn to reading as a child. I've always found myself drawn to those times of the day like twilight and midnight where the veil is thinnest between two worlds - as manifested in time travel, parallel worlds, and the meeting of visible and invisible worlds. I'm sure I'm going to be doing a lot more creating around these themes soon. It's such a pleasure to have been further inspired by your piece!
Yes, all the ways the magic could have happened! So much of what fascinates me are these thresholds between worlds, past and future, etc. I look forward to reading your work on these themes! Thank you for reading and for sharing, Suyin!
Thank you Priya! I feel the same! Looking forward to reading your ongoing explorations of the theme too ☺️
Great writing! I love how you detailed the moment synchronicity intersected your path, facilitating the correction. The stranger's decision to greet and question you was perfectly timed... how she could sense that you were in need of assistance--for me--cuts to the essence of our connectedness. Had she sensed this need and remained quiet would've demonstrated our isolation and denial of a collective consciousness.
Thank you for sharing this incident so beautifully. Those shadings in our perceived color of water always intrigue me. Perhaps other beings see different parts of the light spectrum and observe the shadings of our energetic being. I suspect my cat and dog look at me and understand things happening in my being that I'm unaware of... perhaps the fellow traveler could see deeper into you than you could.
Richard, it was another one of those disorienting incidents when you are in the middle of something that doesn’t quite add up with logic alone. I hadn’t thought of interconnectedness as much as I thought of trajectory- a kind of what’s supposed to happen (you can see my fatalism here) in order for the next pre-ordained domino to fall. Maybe someone else needed to take that seat and I had to hop off! Thanks for reading and for sharing your thoughts! Appreciate it!
This felt like a Ruskin Bond story Priya. Enjoyed reading it!
Shital, thank you! It was definitely thrilling and scary!
Love this story! 💗🙏
Veronica, thank you! Appreciate your reading it!
I like the detailed description and emotional journey, making the read very interesting.
Tinashe, thank you for reading and I’m glad it was interesting!
Enjoyed that read Priya! Did you tell your grandparents about the chance encounter and if so what did they say?
Nope, I didn’t tell anybody except the internet now! I would’ve gotten an earful on carelessness from everyone though probably not from my grandfather who, knowing how easily I got intimidated, tended to shield me from others. It was a shock to me and it took me awhile to process it. I’ve had other train-related experiences (e.g. once I overslept and missed the station I had to get down at, and that’s a famous family anecdote) so trains, waiting rooms, railway stations are favorite sources of inspiration. Thank you, Reena, for reading!
Hi Priya, I remember reading this when you first shared it, however, for me, there is a different feel to it now... a sense of investigation into "The logical part of me will announce sternly that I was lucky the stranger asked me where I was going at just the right time while the older, more fanciful part, steeped as it is in ancient cultural and family legends, will wonder what magic made her do that."
And I would offer that what you're calling your more 'fanciful' part, is perhaps a part of yourself that recognizes the mystical, the unseen, the spiritual aspect of life. For me, this always points towards the Pierre Teilhard de Chardin quote, "We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience."
And yet I also have a very rational, logical part that is very grounded in our material, physical world, that can "explain" things like your story - the woman could have noticed that you were a young and inexperienced student traveller who looked like she didn't know where she was going or what she was doing, and perhaps she had witnessed a situation like that before on that train, and she thought she'd save you the trouble of going to the wrong place.
Maybe it's all true. Maybe that's what our human species is moving towards - being able to embrace BOTH the rational and the mystical. May it be so❤️🙏🕊️
Camilla, thank you for reading! I agree- embracing both seems to be the answer. I grew up surrounded almost completely by mysticism and it’s only as I’ve gotten older that I remember to insert a dose of rationale. Always great having these conversations with you!
This is such a wonderful essay. I love how you describe that moment of “coincidence.” Amazing how many of those moments there are when I’m paying attention.
LeeAnn, thank you for reading! I agree, it’s probably more times than we notice. For me, the growing has been in allowing room for logic. When this happened, I believed that it was sheer magic. It’s only in retrospect that I can poke holes and apply some logic.
I remember reading the shorter version of this story last time and thinking about how that lady seemed to be one of those people who come along just when we need them. Rational or magical many people seem to have these experiences and I think that speaks to the often hard to perceive interconnectedness of everything. :)
I didn’t think of interconnectedness though now I can imagine consciousness experiencing itself as both the problem and the solution!
Thanks for reading, Michael!
This was such a lovely read, Priya! I can’t imagine the terror of finding yourself on the wrong train, potentially stranded at the station of a small city, wondering if you’d get on the right train.
Problems are compounded when it happens at night time! Thanks for reading and sharing, Shinjini!