Life of a Commuter

Gah, commuting… I spend a lot of my life on public transport.. I am finding this challenging lately, as the sun is setting earlier and the days are getting colder. Commuting can add an extra three hours on to my work day, which can feel like so much time lost from my life each week.

But, I do get to travel on the Freo line, which means most mornings if I look up from my phone, I get to see this.

And that’s a pretty good way to start the day.

Usually trying to get home is my biggest problem, as I catch a train and a bus. And as everyone else in Perth who catches more than one service knows, these things don’t connect at night, so I’m usually up for anywhere from a ten to forty minute wait at the station. So usually by the time my bus comes I’m just exhausted and want to get home.

But then two incidents a few weeks ago made me realise how lucky I am to be a part of these small communities, and experience a different element of life than others do.

Firstly, heading home one night, an old man jumped on to our bus who looked a bit dishevelled and perhaps like he didn’t have a secure roof over his head to go home too. The kind of person that we unfortunately tend to ignore or maybe not even think too much about. He sat down opposite a couple that had just been out fishing and were sharing a large package of hot chips. And something connected between them. The couple started talking to him about his day and fishing, and handed over their chips, claiming fullness. By the way he dug in, he probably hadn’t eaten in a while. It was a beautiful interaction to watch – just three fellow travellers on their way home after a busy day, talking and sharing food. Although there was a divide of economics, lifestyle, age and homelife, this was all forgotten as we sat on the bus, together. That is the kind of community I like to be a part of, and a slice of life I miss when I’m alone in my car.