"Trainspotting"

If the boy in Ayan’s story lived where I do, he would probably have never liked to move to another place (though it’s difficult to imagine that Ayan’s characters wouldn’t have inherited his wanderlust!). For I stay close to a railway station and hence, often get an opportunity to see trains chugging along from the side of my buildings. Over the last several months, whenever I go down for a walk, I can’t help moving to the area closer to the railway tracks and once there, I keep waiting for trains to pass by. With local trains running at frequent intervals, sighting a train is never a long wait. However, what actually excites me is watching a long distance train zipping past. The sight of a long distance train tearing away and its rumbling and thundering sound evoke childlike wonder and awe in me. I thoroughly enjoy those moments, thrilled by speed and sound.

I usually stay there until I have seen at least one long distance train and then move on. However, at times, when the wait for a long distance train gets longer, I start walking back, trying very hard to be content with the sight of only local trains. But my heart continues to long for more and hence, if, while walking back, I again hear the sound of a train approaching, I rush back, often breaking into a run, anxious not to miss the spectacle. And finally when I get to see what I had waited for, it feels so immensely satisfying.

As a kid too, I used to enjoy watching trains. From one of the houses that we had stayed in while in Madhepura, we could see trains passing by far in the distance beyond a river. And we would often have fun counting the innumerable number of bogies of the goods trains, which seemed to be never-ending.

I have so many memories related to trains and train journeys, having done most of my travelling by trains. And while I am not too fond of journeys in general (for I don’t feel at peace until I have reached my destination), I do have a certain fascination for trains. In January this year, when after ages I travelled on a meter gauge train to Ratlam, I felt so nostalgic, remembering all the train journeys we had while going to and fro from Madhepura and on the Gaya-Kiul line. I would love to travel more frequently by trains in the coming years, feasting on the beautiful sights that only a train journey can offer. And hopefully, some of these would be trips without a pre-defined purpose so that I can just enjoy the journey instead of waiting for the destination.