going underground
Reading “Underground “, one particular aspect of many of the stories has stuck with me, in the back of my mind. Nearly everyone that recounted what they experienced on March 20th knew exactly which rail car they sat in, which door of that car they entered through, and in some cases, where they sat. Not because of the magnitude of the events of that day, although that would be understandable, but because that’s what they do every morning. Day in, day out.
The reasons given ran the gamut from practical “that puts me right by the exit closest to my office“, to whimsical “you get the best view from the Yotsuya Station platform. Looking out past the roof line you can see the Sophia University soccer field, it’s like a breath of fresh air!”
At first this struck me as incredibly odd, but the more I thought about it, and the more I paid attention to my own behavior, the more routine every day became. Every morning I take the same route to work simply because it’s the fastest I’ve found. When I go downtown, I always take the same route and always attempt to park in the same lot, for no fathomable reason. The more I ponder on it, the more I realize I need to find my own breath of fresh air.
brevity
There’s a lot to be said for it.