But there’s a lot more going on.
***
This past weekend, I took shelter at Penn Station for a few hours while waiting for my acting classes to start. My first move was to chill at the Tim Horton’s/Nathan’s food area, where they have seats and tables. After 2 hours of reading and writing there, they kicked me out for not having purchased anything.
Here’s something I did to pass the time that you might like to try (it doesn’t necessarily have to be at Penn Station – that’s not the point).
***
TRY sitting on the floor in “the circle” area, back leaned against one of the pillars, and just sit there and pay attention for a half hour or so.
Your perspective changes.
And because of that, you notice a lot of cool things.
First off, everything seems grander. Especially if you’re in “the circle.” There’s something about the circular walls and ceiling that already immediately impresses, and having your butt on the floor only heightens that sense of grandiosity – you notice just how high the ceiling is from the floor, and how much space there is, and how tiny you are.
Watch as people pass by. Observe the remarkable variety of commuter, of body types, of movement styles, of auras. Watch the juxtapositions between the individuals that comprise this variety. I watched a midget clutching a paper bag walk by a tall guy wheeling a suitcase – because of my angle from the ground, he appeared nearly twice as tall as her! It was weird.
Try closing your eyes in weariness. Let your other senses kick in. Listen to the footsteps go by, and to the sounds of bustle that surround you, occasionally interspersed with ETA announcements. Notice how different types of luggage wheels produce different qualities of sound – some roll more smoothly, others with a more sandy gritty grainy quality, from friction. The same for footsteps – notice different walking rhythms, and different contact sounds from different footwear.
Listen to the variety of languages, to the street language, the curses, the coughs, the sickness, the phone conversations, the shooting of the breeze between the Krispy Kreme employees at your back, the starting and stopping of blenders crushing ice at Planet Smoothies, like a dull street drill in the background. Take in the scents – occasional whiffs of cologne, or the sometimes foul odor of the homeless.
Observe the weary around you – the homeless people catching some shut-eye, or tired commuters taking a nap. Three laborers were passed out right next to me, and I noticed how they all assumed very different positions for their nap. One was on his back, legs spread eagle in a V, and head resting on a sand-colored tote bag. Another slept on his side, head (baseball cap still on) on his backpack, arms and legs carefully layered on top of one another – a much neater and tidier form of public repose. The third slept on this side too, but much more sloppily – legs tangled together, as if seeking warmth and touch from each other, and his head facing the wall, as if to block out the rest of the world.
***
It really is a whole world of it’s own, New York Penn Station.
And I’ve only described one tiny fraction of it for you today. Try describing some for yourself.
Warning: When you get up, you may get a head rush.
***
Pay attention to the world that surrounds you. Fill in the details.
Find joy in doing so.
-David
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