Ana Pokora

The New York Subway

Its funny; how life works. 

My city is united by railways. 

5 boroughs, and everyday is the same routine

4am, workers dragged out their bed sleep on the karts on their way to work

No care for appearance, pulling through the hours to make an extra cent

To be home, before their kids arrive from school.

12 Noon, we begin to see the homeless

Begging for money, for different reasons 

But to us it all sounds the same.

We venture along these carts on the same routine.

With hopes that show no progress but keep our minds alive.

We do not acknowledge each other's presence

Yet somehow, these trains are the only thing that bring us all together.

Nobody realizes how much we depend on each other, the same way we depend on our trains to take us everywhere.

What if our train was to fail in the middle of out journey?

Who will we turn to? 

Will we talk to our family? But we have no reception.

What if the person next to us panics, will I care? 

What if that homeless person can save the life of someone who falls in deep trouble while were stuck

And we misjudge. And we distrust 

We venture with the people that inhabit our home, yet we treat them like their aliens from another world

We're enslaved by our emotions and our pride.

Walking through the streets with our heads bowed down, showing no emotion

No sign of happiness, no sign of life.

Is that life? Is that how we thank the deeds of one another?

Well thats what the subway does.

Imagine walking into the train one day

Like the first day of class, will you introduce yourself to the fellah next to you?

Because thats the manners we were taught 

There is no rule that says you cannot strike a conversation, with a stranger

Our freedom is limited but it is limited by US.

1pm: a baby cries on the train and his father is struggling to quiet him down. His mom is not with him, and the dad keeps telling him to go to sleep. A lady across from me notices and she only speaks spanish. She moves towards him to make signs to the baby to make him smile. She asks the dad to sit next to her and he doesn't understand. A girl sitting in front of him translates. He moves towards her and as she starts to play with the baby he begins to smile. Sigh of relief from the dad and he thanks her as he gets off 3 stops later...