The Subway Melody

This Sunday, I was returning from yet another pointless solitary stroll in downtown. I went down the subway on the Jackson Boulevard. It was stuffy inside and I decided to take my coat off. Along with the coat, out came my ipod earphones. That is when I felt the melody in the air. There was an old Hispanic lady sitting behind a pillar. She was of medium build, wearing a red sweater, a bunch of keys dangling from her neck like a locket. An instrument case was neatly kept on the side and a battery powered music box was filling music to the otherwise bland station. She was playing what might be an improvised version of a violin. And … she was marvelous. I mean she was MARVELOUS. I don’t know whether it was because of my mood at that moment or just because she was too good, I felt like I could listen to that forever…. However (sigh!) it actually lasted too short, I believe not more than ten minutes by the standard watch. The next train rumbled in shattering the music on its way. I dropped two dollars in her kitty. She looked at me and smiled. A smile of gratitude. Little does she know, her music is worth much more than a few bucks.