It continued to rain steadily. As I watched through the window, trees and fields passed me by swiftly. Sometimes there would be a lonely hut in the middle of a desolate field, or little boys watching from underneath shelters with wide innocent eyes. I wondered what each one of their lives would be like, what their joys and fears would be.....The train was relatively empty. I didn't have anyone for company exept an old man in a wrinkled shirt, who sat opposite me looking lost in thought. He didn't interest me and I continued with my musings.
After a while, I realized he had an open book in hand but wasn't reading it. He seemed to notice that I observed this and smiled. We chatted for a while about trivial things. The heavy rain with its intermittent thunder and occational flashes of lightening was now driven by a strong wind that began to play havoc with it. Water lashed at the windows, drenching them and blurring the scenery outside.
Gradually, our conversation drifted into deeper things. I was surprised to learn that he had a passion for reading. I found myself opening up to him, telling him things I hadn't talked about for years. My deepest fears, my worst anxieties, my innermost struggles all came pouring out like a torrent. And he listened. Normally the thought of revealing so much of my life was beyond my imagination but the lack of familiarity and the fact that we would never meet again, diffused my inhibitions.
He listened and maybe it was my imagination, but he seemed to care. He didn't offer much in the way of advice but talked of his own life and how he coped. What came through was a lonely man, with no one to care for, no one to come home to, no gradchildren to play with, a recluse finding solace in books living a solitary existence. In spite of all the pain, he hadn't hardened, wasn't in the least embittered. He hadn't lost his sensitivity, his capacity to think and feel and reach out.
As I listened to him talk, I began to see the light. I had so many people who loved me and cared for me. Life wasn't so depressing anymore. I suddenly knew I should learn from my mistakes and move on. I had my whole life ahead of me. There would always be those gloomy days when everything goes wrong and lige seems to be falling apart. But, I realized, those moments of despair are but islands in an ocean of hope. I felt joy at the enlightenment. And a sense of freedom.
The rain had subsided to a gentle drizzle. It came in a light bouncing step and pranced about in a carefree spirit. In the distant sky I noticed the faint trace of a rainbow and it seemed to be smiling down at me. We continued to talk every now and then slipping into a companionable silence.
The train slowed down and reluctantly came to a halt. It was time for me to get off and I bade him farewell. I wanted to express my gratitude but the words wouldn't come. There was no specific thing I could thank him for, nothing I could put my finger on. Finally I thanked him for his company , wished him well and got off the train.
My sister, brother-in-law and the kids were there to receive me. They greeted me with warm hugs and delighted smiles. Everyone was talking all at once, excitedly, the kids screaming and giggling. It was a happy state of confusion and I rejoiced in the shared warmth. But part of me was elsewhere wandering. I had learned so many things that day, I had overcome so much. I had realized that rich thoughts can lie buried under ordinary facades, that wisdom comes in many forms. And while my sister chatted on endlessly, I was thinking of an old man in a wrinkled shirt looking lost in thought.