Imprisonment via Train

She stared out the train window, watching the scenery whiz by quickly as she made her way home.  If she squinted her eyes, the trees, dilapidated houses, homeless encampments, and open space all seemed to intersect together into one big blob.  

Her train rides to and from work and home were approximately an hour and a half long with 10 stops.  There was approximately 10 minutes between each stop.  Sighing, she wondered why she would endure a three-hour daily round trip commute. 

Conductor: Now reaching Smithson.  If Smithson is your destination, please exit now. Please watch your step. Smithson. 

David.  Ugh, her husband probably hadn’t fed the cats yet.  The house would be in disarray - especially since he got home - and before she could even think about sitting down and eating dinner, she would need to feed and give their two kitties water, do the dishes, clean the litter box, and go through the mail to make sure no important documents showed up because David would open them - and then forget about them. 

Conductor: Now reaching Watsonville. If Watsonville is your destination, please exit now.  Please watch your step. Watsonville. 

How many podcasts had she listened to and read?  Countless!  And on her trusty Kindle, she had read everything from biographies to science fiction to memoirs and romance novels, trying to pass the time and improve her knowledge.  But sometimes - okay, all the time - she just wanted to be home, curling up with her kitties, maybe watch a show before bedtime.  She felt stuck in an infinite loop, Groundhog Day movie style. 

Conductor: Now reaching Canyon City. If Canyon City is your destination, please exit now. Please watch your step. Canyon City. 

And dinner, what would she do for dinner?  She thought if they had the ingredients for a turkey sandwich?  She could always text David to ask, but he was always slow to answer and would probably already be eating dinner with his parents as she didn’t get home until nearly eight o’clock and his parents only lived 10 minutes away. Sometimes she would ask him to bring home any leftovers she’d like, but she was never a fan of his family’s food as they used too many spices.   She mostly enjoyed bland food, but at least she only had to worry about what to feed herself during the work week. 

Conductor: Now reaching Summerville. If Summerville is your destination, please exit now.  Please watch your step. Summerville. 

She had tried to get a job in their city and had actually been offered a job, but her current job paid almost double more plus they’d have retiree health care after she worked there for 25 years.  Having already worked there for 13 years, she was halfway through to her goal.  She and David would need the healthcare as they got older. Of course, she decided not to pursue a promotion as a promotion would place her at an office location further away from her home as she couldn’t be a supervisor to her former colleagues. So she’d watch David instead climb the ladder, congratulating him as he got promotion after promotion, while also secretly resenting him for never thanking her for her sacrifice and for his 15 minute commute. 

Conductor: Now reaching Asheville. If Asheville is your destination, please exit now. Please watch your step. Asheville. 

So it was not only her sanity from commuting that she had given up, but she had moved from her city - leaving her family and friends behind -  to David’s city to be with him. By time the negative effects of the commute had fully hit her, she was already in love with David - and bought a house with him in his city before house prices had gone up again.  Although it was a beautiful house, she wished she could spend more time in it, rather than clinging to what little sleep she could and worrying about the next day, trying to cope with her feelings of boredom, tiredness, frustration, unfairness, and more as she made her way to her job. 

Conductor: Now reaching Milton. If Milton is your destination, please exit now.  Please watch your step. Milton.  

David. He was selfish, stubborn, but could always live in the moment, although it meant he could never think ahead. He had a rich professional and personal life. His family and friends were here since he grew up here, he had good mental and physical health, and a great job close to home. She missed her family and friends, her mental health was in shambles, her body hurt from so much sitting and the 15 pound office-commute weight gain.  Her mind shifted to wondering how much longer it would take to get home to whether it would be easier for the train to derail and everyone would be miraculously unhurt - except for her.  And that would be it.  

Conductor: Now reaching Whitefish.  If Whitefish is your destination, please exit now. Please watch your step. Whitefish. 

She felt crazy. What was she thinking?  People had it so much worse than her, trying to find jobs, dealing with health problems, securing food for themselves and their family, living paycheck to paycheck, and here she was complaining because she had to sit on a train for three hours in addition to her job.  She got to be with the love of her life, David.  

Conductor: Now reaching Rapid City. If Rapid City is your destination, please exit now.   Please watch your step. Rapid city. 

David had won her over on a mutual friend’s trip to the Bahamas eight years ago. With an endless supply of Patron shots, they spent time making out, talking about everything and nonsense, and she knew she was smitten by the end of the trip.  Despite her negative view of her body, he made her feel like she was the most beautiful girl in the world and treated her like her thoughts and opinions mattered.  They had a similar sense of humor and values, and both were cat people over dog people.  She smiled.  

Conductor: Now reaching Elkins. If Elkins if your destination, please exit now.  Please watch your step. Elkins. 

And it hit her like a pillow stuffed with rocks, this was her decision.  She chose this. No one made her do anything.  She wanted to yell and scream at David and blame him for all of it, that she was tired and frustrated and stressed, but this was the price she paid and more importantly, chose. David would be there to greet her with a hug and he was all worth it, right?  Right?

She gathered her lunch bag, jacket, and purse together and made her way to the train exit. 

Conductor: Now reaching Colleyville.  If Colleyville is your destination, please exit now.  Please watch your step. Colleyville. 

The doors opened - and she tripped as she stepped out of the train. Laughing to herself, she made her way to her car for the short drive home, psyching up herself for the commute to work tomorrow.