I had just boarded my 6.30am train from Montreal Central Station to Ottawa. I removed my coat jacket and placed it onto the hangar, asked for a coffee and stared out the window. The train exited the platform and this beautiful sunrise dawned. The next few minutes made me wonder why I don't travel by train, especially in ones with such big ass windows. I looked down the alleyway of the Via rail Business Class compartment....
.... I asked myself, "When was the last time I was in an inter-city train?"
It was two years ago, Dec 2009, when I was travelling from Mumbai to Mangalore and back. The time before that was around Dec 2005 from Tver to St. Petersburg.
In all these flashbacks I noticed a stark contrast in my life status and maturity. Back in 2005, I was this clueless student three years into my Bachelors degree, not really sure what the next couple of years would bring. I felt like I was just tied down and following the path with the bread-crumbs all over it.
Alternatively, in 2009, I was almost done with my Masters degree in the USA, much more mature and street-smart (I would like to believe). I was looking forward to the challenges awaiting me in that trip, the semester after it, the the job-hunt eventually.
And now, I am working for one of the biggest companies in my industry, impacting daily airline operations and making a business trip in business class wearing a nice suit, sipping on nice coffee accompanied with a continental breakfast, just hungry for every opportunity I get to progress.
A flashing sequence of memories tied together by trigger cues. Quite a satisfying feeling of progression in life.
