Last Train Home

I had never taken the last train home until last night. When I finished adding the last footnotes and endnotes, it was almost 1:15 am. I picked up the document, put on my jacket and hailed a cab, “destination Kinko’s”! For those of you who have been in school long enough to appreciate a 24-hr print shop, Kinko’s is a lifesaver!

“How fast can you photocopy and bind this document?”….. “No, it is not due now, but I would like to catch the last train home, if possible”… “Excellent! And where did you say the bathroom is?”

I was breathing heavily once I got on the train platform, hoping that I hadn’t missed the last train! Perhaps I hadn’t realized this before, but as I watched the train slow down on the platform, it blew the wind into my hair and I felt a light and refreshing feeling in my chest. The doors opened and I gracefully walked into the cabin as if I had walked into my own personal jet! Then I took my time to pick a seat, since there was no competition.

As I sat down, holding my beautifully bound research paper against my chest, I felt very much accomplished. I had finished my work just in time to take the last train home. The operator reminded me of that every time she notified the very few passengers on the train that it would go out of service at the last stop.

Fifteen minutes was passed before I started feeling a bit more than accomplished. I was hungry and thirsty, since I had been too occupied in the afternoon to remember to eat. Still, I decided to close my eyes, rest my head against the glass window and enjoy taking the last train home.