Watching the World Go By

I finally got a chance to sit and relax in the observation car, watching the world go by.

There was something so peaceful about it.

No rushing. No schedule I had to manage. No class to teach. No video to edit. Nothing I needed to accomplish at that moment.

I could simply sit.

As I looked through those big windows and watched the scenery pass by, I felt calm and reflective. Towns, roads, open spaces, homes, and people appeared for a moment and then disappeared behind me.

Maybe that’s one of the gifts of traveling by train.

You get to actually see the distance between where you’ve been and where you’re going.

And I realized that life can be a lot like this train ride. We spend so much time focused on getting to the next destination that sometimes we forget to enjoy what we can see along the way.

At this point in my life, I’m learning that I don’t always have to be doing something.

Sometimes it’s okay to sit.

To look.

To think.

To remember.

To dream about the years ahead.

And to simply watch the world go by.

Today, from my seat in the observation car, that was enough.

Paul Eugene