Chaos of the Mundane

He rides the E train to escape, see and discover. He tries to escape the chaos of the mundane and enters into the silence of gaudy and the strident.

Every evening as he rushes down the long grand stairway at Jamaica Center, he is greated by the man at the bottom of the stairs giving out warnings of what peril awaits in the pits of hell. The rider quickly and like a ballet dancer swiftly escapes his grasps as he makes his way toward the MetroCard machine. The rider is then greeted by the hustler who tries relentlessly to get the rider's attention. "Come on mane, buy the card from me son, I have an AllDayPass for five dollars," he says. The rider continues to handle his transaction and never even makes eye contact. He then makes his way through the turnstyle and down the stairs and with every steps he takes he continues to feel the air become heavy. He never understood why it was so hot underground, maybe it was the heat of the trains. It reminded him of the heat in his mother's kitchen. The heat was unbearable and the kitchen always smelled heavy of ginger and cinnamon, but instead all he could smell was the polluted gas which seeped from the new eco friendly trains. He took his seat and waited for the train to fill and eventually depart. While awaiting the trains depart, he realized that he spent most of his life waiting patiently but longed to be the aggressor or the go-getter. Why couldn't he have the courage to stop being a "good boy ?" All he ever did was listen and follow instructions, he felt trapped.

The train finally departed and started down its path through the tight coiled tunnels of the vast subway system. The rider realized that his life was like a tight coiled tunnel, right now he was in a tight turn, he anticipated a smooth transition though. A transition to becoming his own man, no longer listening and following instructions but disregarding and leading. Disregarding thoughts that he was nothing with out his parents, that they were the only one who knew best. Ignoring voices that he had no future, that he was meant to be miserable. He declared himself leader, Commander-in-chief of his existence. After his journey, he would go home and divide and conquer and bring peace and solice to the chaos of the mundane. He wanted to make his home life liveable, the chaotic boredom was nauseating.

The rider continue to sit and gain strength for his mission. Between his courageous anticipations and the silence of the gaudy and strident, he felt recharged and ready.