Triggered Memories

Funny how when reading someones blog, it can trigger memories, that as a blogger, one feels compelled to share. I follow "An Explorer's View of Life". His post today brought back so many memories. He's from Canada, where they have a "Go Train", which looks like the New York version of the Ell trains. It's their subway system above ground.
In the mornings I used to get on the Ell, the same people always on the platform, and no one ever saying "Good morning" or even a nod of recognition of each other. By the time we get to the end of the line and go down stairs to the subway, which I began to think of as the "dungeon", the craziness really takes over. You get so used to the madness, one really doesn't think about it. Your body, along with your mind goes on auto pilot.
Riding the subway system was my way of life. I never thought a whole lot about it until, one day it was like something snapped me awake, as I was heading to work. I started looking at the people around me, and realized I had seen them everyday I went to work.
As the train was nearing the end of the line, it had gotten so crowed, people were standing close, breathing in each others face. Morning breath mixed with the sent of garlic, making me want to up chuck on an empty stomach, and strangers too close for comfort, touching and bumping into you, Yuk!
Then down stairs to the "dungeon", to continue on my journey, which would take me to other trains. Local, express, the A or D train.
Instead of my usual rushing to make my connection, I inched myself away from the fast paced shoving, pushing and bustling of the people and found myself against a wall, just watching in amazement, as though it was the first time I was seeing my surroundings. I compared the scene to a "cattle drive" I have seen on a television western.
All day at work, I had a hard time shaking the images of my morning commute. Yet, at the end of the day, when I was going home, I was so very aware of everything around me. I watched a short elderly woman, a brown shopping bag hanging on each arm, stretched out, pushing her way through the crowd, trying to get off at her stop. "Oh my God, I don't want that to me when I get older", I'm saying to myself.
It's not that I haven't seen craziness in the subways, like men urinating down there, drunks, homeless people and sickos. I was always aware and stayed clear of them. It was just the whole thing in general that I truly wasn't aware of. The thought of myself being part of the "cattle" was so disturbing to me, I started making plans to leave New York.