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a story about people
Oct. 17th, 2011 11:08 amI was on the subway on Saturday in a car that was medium-full. There were a few isolated seats available and a number of people standing up. There was a group of a dozen or so teenager girls sitting at one end of the car, all in matching sports gear and with large duffle bags that obviously were carrying some kind of equipment crammed in the aisles. They were talking and laughing loudly to each other and stretched out all over the seats the way teenagers do.
An older man got on and took a seat not far from them. His face was rough and unshaven and his clothes were worn and stained. He started singing and humming to himself. One of the girls sang a few of the words along with him.
Two minutes later he was teaching the entire group of them the words to songs like "Save the Last Dance" and "Wonderful World" and they serenaded the subway car for the rest of the 20-minute trip. They cheered and laughed after every song. Every person who got on the train did a double-take at the singing and then sat down smiling.
The girls got off at one of the exchanges where a lot of passengers transfer back and forth between the two major lines. As they piled out of the subway car they waved and yelled their good-byes to the man and he shouted blessings and luck back at them.
I was on the subway for a few more stops after they left and the man continued singing for a little while. The people who had just got on frowned and looked away, trying to avoid eye contact with the crazy homeless guy. A couple of women sitting near me pointed at him and snickered to each other. Eventually he subsided and when I got off at my stop he was travelling in silence along with the rest of the car.
An older man got on and took a seat not far from them. His face was rough and unshaven and his clothes were worn and stained. He started singing and humming to himself. One of the girls sang a few of the words along with him.
Two minutes later he was teaching the entire group of them the words to songs like "Save the Last Dance" and "Wonderful World" and they serenaded the subway car for the rest of the 20-minute trip. They cheered and laughed after every song. Every person who got on the train did a double-take at the singing and then sat down smiling.
The girls got off at one of the exchanges where a lot of passengers transfer back and forth between the two major lines. As they piled out of the subway car they waved and yelled their good-byes to the man and he shouted blessings and luck back at them.
I was on the subway for a few more stops after they left and the man continued singing for a little while. The people who had just got on frowned and looked away, trying to avoid eye contact with the crazy homeless guy. A couple of women sitting near me pointed at him and snickered to each other. Eventually he subsided and when I got off at my stop he was travelling in silence along with the rest of the car.