Do you ever think about people who you met briefly on train journeys (or other ways)?

[Specialneedsnightmare]

Occasionally I still think about people who I sat near to on a busy train journey and wonder how things turned out for them. Not necessarily significant things either. Years ago I was on a train to Guildford and sat at a table with a mother and two adult daughters who were going to a restaurant followed by a party. They were debating what to eat and whether some person they knew would be there and what he might say. They were worried he might cause trouble. They wanted to leave early from the party. I wonder if they went and if the guy was there and what happened. Odd I know..

Another time I was on a train on the south coast and a group of college students got on. I was at a table with two girls who were discussing their upcoming exams. One girl was clearly intelligent and driven and waa trying to encourage her friend who was struggling with a lack of confidence. She told her she could do anything she set her mind to, but not to "be lazy" and to work hard for it. Clearly had excellent parents! Like with the women, sometimes my thoughts go back to the girls and I wonder how they got on.

Does anyone else ever wonder about people who they shared a brief journey with?

Yes. I met a lovely elderly man at Bristol Parkway once.

All the trains were delayed and we had a great chat about beaches.

I talk to people everywhere though, so a few come to mind!

I've really enjoyed a number of conversations I've overheard on trains. But your post really reminded me OP of the Philip Larkin poem The Whitsun Weddings:

www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/48411/the-whitsun-weddings

Oh yes very apt! Beautifully written and totally captures the essence of what i meant. We share a space for a brief time and everyone's life contains that hour, before we continue on our own journeys. But something sort of stays and you wonder.

Yes. I was on a train into London once. As it was pulling into the station I was stood up in the aisle in a queue of people waiting to get off as the train slowly pulled into the station. In the seat next to where I was stood was a young adult male. His phone went and he answered it. He looked extremely nervous. Looked down and put his head in his hand. I couldn’t hear anything he was saying because he was mumbling .. or not speaking at all, whilst the phone was still to his ear and he was looking down with head in hand. All of a sudden I saw loads of little pin prick size dots of sweat soaking into his tee shirt, just getting bigger and bigger in real time. It was the weirdest thing. I remember thinking what has he just heard in the phone to cause that physical reaction ?! Still to this day I wonder. If I had to put money on it I would guess he had committed a serious crime or something and someone in his friendship group had just rang to tell him the police had discovered it or something. Obviously that’s just my guess but whatever it was he heard on the phone it was enough to suddenly cause a pretty dramatic physical reaction of nerves or fear.

Oh my gosh, that would stay on my mind as well! It's these kinds of snapshots that leave you wondering what on earth that was all about and what happened afterwards. I hope the guy was ok, whatever was going on, obviously unless he'd done something truly heinous.

I love this thread, idea OP. When I'm on a motorway (and not driving!) I always glance into the passing cars and see who's in them, wondering who they are and why they're travelling. I see family cars piled up with luggage and imagine the holiday to come or that has been, or people in business suits where I wonder if they're off to meet an important client and maybe they're running through their presentation in their head as they're bombing up the fast lane. The Larkin peom is so evocative and sums up these fleeting glances into other lives.

I was on a long flight from Kathmandu back to Manchester. 11 hours. The flight was delayed by 6 hours. I was sitting by a young woman who had travelled from Shanghai where she had been to a trade fair. She told me her parents were waiting for her at the airport but they lived well over an hours drive away. By the time we picked up our baggage it would be about 2 am before she reached home. I asked her if she was planning to go into work next day and she said yes. I advised her to call in with jet lag but she said she didn't like to do it as she was fairly new to the company. I told her "All the more reason to take the day off. Start as you mean to go on." Her employer must have known Shanghai to Manchester is a brutal journey and no reasonable manager would have expected her to go in, I often wonder what she did.

Me, I would not have dreamed of going into work next day.

My shy son described me as a Labrador in human form on public transport, he isn't wrong. So I often chat to my fellow travellers. And yes I remember them and think about them sometimes.

On a train years ago, a young lad, maybe 18 or 19 got on with a bike. He stood near the door, he looked so sad. His phone rang, I heard him tell the person he was going home for his mums funeral.
I still wonder how that lad coped, and hope he got over her death and is living a happy life now.

That's really sad. Poor guy I hope he found some peace and happiness in life eventually.

Yes i also do this.

In the north we often talk to people at bus queues. Its just a way of passing the time. Many years ago I was waiting for a bus in an area of Bristol and I made some passing remark about the weather to a fellow passenger. She gave me a snooty look and said. "You must be from the north. Its not the custom to talk to strangers here" I told her "Yes - I was warned that you southerners has no social skills" Her face looked like a smacked ass.

Love this.

Brilliant retort! She was wrong (not to mention rude) though- I'm far down south and have chatted to people about the weather! I can usually tell those who don't want to engage but generally people like a natter. Have to say. I don't find londoners as friendly though.

Yes. Right time - right place at that moment in time!

There was this lady I used to see regularly on the tube. I got on at the very first stop and she got on after. Carriage was usually empty but she always sat two seats from me or opposite me, and would be passive aggressive with her space. If my bag was on the seat next to me, put hers on top. If she was opposite, stretch out her legs massively so they’re almost touching me, and so on.

Never knew what her problem was, I suspect either I upset her once without realising or I would sit in her favourite seat.

Haven’t seen her since Covid. She had a NHs lanyard so I do wonder from time to time if she’s ok.

I was on a train in a nightmare situation, cancellations etc. I ended up sitting on the floor between carriages with two women. One in her 50s I'd say, the other in her 40s. I was in my 20s. The woman in her 50s was really shaky and having a terrible panic attack. The woman in her 40s just radiated chill. She managed to soothe the other woman. The one in her 40s had those ear seeds. I often think of them both.

This is a really hazy memory but I do still think of it sometimes. When I used to commute by train to Tonbridge it still had the slam-door trains. One night we were packed on, and a young woman squeezed into the carriage but must not have slammed the door enough because it opened as we set off. Another passenger grabbed her and probably saved her life. It was passed off as no big deal, but I wonder if she ever thinks about it.

Partner and I were travelling on Eurostar and a very hale and hearty type of young man was sitting opposite us. He had a very loud voice but he was only trying to be friendly to everyone. He was a bit of a pain, though, maybe because we were all terribly British in the carriage. One week later we were travelling back and suddenly we heard a voice we recognised from further down the same carriage. Yes, it was Mr hale and hearty.

We did wonder if he is like that all the time, and how many people he routinely pisses off.

Yep I think about K* and hope he is doing OK. K* was in the adjacent cubicle when dh was in A&E in the autumn and absolutely devastated because his step dad had just died & crying that he wanted to die too as he was all alone now. We suspect he had some sort of learning difficulties as he was really finding it difficult to accept that his step-dad had gone. The staff were absolutely lovely with him, gave him lots of time and got him help from I assume social services. dh and I often wonder how he is doing now. It really touched a nerve as we always wonder how ds2 (with an ASC) will cope when we are gone.

A couple of months ago I got talking to a very young man at a small station in Croatia. It was a long weekend, so I asked if he was going away. He said he'd been kicked out of the home he was in as he'd turned 18, and was heading to Zagreb. He was scared as it would be his first night without a roof over his head. He only had a rucksack with him. My train arrived so I wished him luck and dashed off, but I think about him sometimes and hope he's okay.

I've been on the Eurostar with him. I wanted to die of embarrassment and was very happy when he got off at Brussels.

Is this true?! How weird! I live in the South. We are often talking at bus stops, etc. the idea that we don’t, is totally an urban myth.

@Friendlygingercat "Many years ago I was waiting for a bus in an area of Bristol and I made some passing remark about the weather to a fellow passenger. She gave me a snooty look and said. "You must be from the north. Its not the custom to talk to strangers here"

She was right, Bristol used to be incredibly unfriendly. I know, I'm born and bred. It was the sort of place where people gave you hard stares for no reason and shop staff/bus drivers chucked your change at you. Talking to someone on a bus stop would've definitely crossed a cultural line! But over the last maybe 15 years it's gained a reputation for being one of the most welcoming and vibrant cities (hence the eye watering house prices). Mainly because there's been an mass influx of people from other regions moving here. I had an almost opposite experience to you. I went on holiday to Lancashire back in the 80's (first time up north) and I honestly thought everyone was somehow taking the piss by randomly chatting to me. Took me a while to stop being suspicious and realise they were genuine.

I'm hoping that the young man who sat neat me on a train from Manchester gets the grade 4 GCSE in Spanish that he wants,