Travel Journal: 2014 New York

Travel Journal: 2014 New York
 

Observed large crowds on an elevated platform,
riders packed into the trains as they paused and
the doors opened. They pushed in, body against
body, without thought, like Eloy herded into the
tunnels at the siren call. They moved forward
devoid of all but the basest of human courtesy.

As the train lurched forward, their feet clawed
for purchase through the yaw and jerk of the cars
as they traversed the aging tracks above the Bronx,
Queens and Brooklyn. Other riders were more
subterranean, riding only underground, cloaked
in fur and animal skins moving about beneath the
towers and rivers  that define the city. Through
the dim tunnels they slid, unaware of the darkness,
like penultimate humans devolving into Morlocks.

Language it seems is optional here, as if commun-
ication is of no import. There is no eye contact, no
exchange of words or pleasantries as each passenger
disengages from the throng and shrinks into a cocoon
state. Ears wired to a small control boxes, they appear
deaf to click-clack and whoosh speeding rail cars.
Bowed heads, stare intently at their display screens,
awaiting further instructions.

HGW