Life on the train

To all my beloved blogger frens who left comment in previous entry...thanks so much from the bottom of my heart. I have no clue how to reply. Please forgive me and love ya all....

Those who came without a trace...also my sincere appreciation.

I decided to republish earlier entry (Dec 5, 2005) since I found it theraupetic for me at this point of time.

Enjoy it.
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My beloved friend sent this to me this morning. My special thanks to the original author (whoever he or she was..).

I dedicated this to all passengers at sentraalstation (especially to Kak Teh, the station master) and all those in the blogging world..with love from Anggerik Merah…


A while back, I read a very interesting book that compared life to a train ride or a series of train rides.

Life is like a train ride, it read
We get on
We ride
We get off

We get back on and ride some more
There are accidents and there are delays
At certain stops there are surprises
Some of these will translate into great moments of joy
Some will result in profound sorrow

When we are born and we first board the train
We met people whom we think will be with us for the entire journey
Those people are our parents!

Sadly, this is far from the truth
Our parents are with us for as long as we absolutely need them
They too have journeys they must complete
We live on with the memories of their love, affection, friendship, guidance and their ever presence

These are others who board the train and who eventually become very important to us, in turn
These people are our brothers, sisters, friends and acquaintance, whom we will learn to love and cherish

Some people consider their journey like a jaunty tour
They will just go merrily along

Others will encounter many upsets, tears, losses on their journey
Others still, will linger on the offer a helping hand to anyone in need

Some people on the train will leave an everlasting impression when they get off
Some will get on and get off the train so quickly, they will scarcely leave a sign that they ever travelled along with you or even crossed your path

We will sometimes be upset that some passengers whom we love, will choose to sit in another compartment and leave us to travel on our own
Then again, there’s nothing that says we can’t seek them out anyway

Nevertheless, once sought out and found, we may not even be able to sit next to them because that seat will already be taken

That’s okay…everyone’s journey will be filled with hope, dreams, challenges, setbacks and goodbyes
We must strive to make the best of it….no matter what

We must constantly strive to understand our travel companions and look for the best in everyone
Remember that at any moment during our journey, any one of our travel companions can have a weak moment and be in need of our help

We too may vacillate or hesitate, even trip…hopefully we can count on someone being there to be supportive and understanding….

The bigger mystery of our journey is that we don’t know when our last stop will come
Neither do we know when our travel companions will make their last stop
Not even those sitting in the seat next to us

Personally, I know I’ll be sad to make my final stop…I’m sure of it!
My separation from all those friends and acquaintances I made during the train ride will be painful
Leaving all those I’m close to will be a sad thing.

But then again, I’m certain that one day I’ll get to the main station only to meet up with everyone else.
They’ll all be carrying their baggage…most of which they didn’t have when they first got on this train

I’ll be glad to see them again
I’ll also be glad to have contributed to their baggage…and to have enriched their lines, just as much as they will have contributed to my baggage and enriched my life

We’re all on this train ride together.
Above all, we should all try to strive to make the ride as pleasant and memorable as we can, right up until we each make the final stop and leave the train for the last time.

All aboard! Safe journey!!

BON VOYAGE