Choo! Choo!

Yesterday I left a little early to try to catch an earlier train to work. As I stepped onto the platform, I heard the "this train is now due to depart" announcement. I ran forward only to find the doors already closed. Just as I was thinking how I was going to have to wait in the station for my regular train, I hear someone ask, "Did you need to catch this train? Where are you going?" It was the train driver. He told me to hop on with him. I thought he would just let me in through the front into the first car, but he invited me to take a seat in the driver's cab. Then I thought I would move back at the next station. But we started talking and I ended up riding up front all the way to my stop. Over the next twenty minutes, we talked about life in Australia and the US, public and private education, religion, politics, WWII, the Middle East, and good books. His name is Van, he got me to work early, and he fulfilled any boy's childhood dream: to ride in the front of a train or a plane. And he proved that if you take a moment to look around, you can meet some pretty interesting people. Thanks for the lift, Van.