Platform No. 1

In the evening, I was sitting at the platform, waiting for the train, and reading The Grapes of Wrath. I was feeling a little happy with myself for having brushed off temptation and done what was uncomfortable, but the thing I had decided. Suddenly a girl came up to me, pointed at the off-white t-shirt worn on brown pants and asked, “Is my t-shirt too tight?” I was taken aback and it took me a while to register why she asked me that and had I heard her correctly. “Is my t-shirt tight?” She asked again, “Does it look okay?” I said yes, it’s fine, when she explained herself “I’m going to the office. My boss shouts at me if it’s tight,” she said and smiled. I saw that she had almost no upper teeth except two on the right side. For a split while I wondered why she was going to work at 7pm, why didn’t she have teeth and what kind of a boss said such things. She went off and I came back to my reading.

I came home and had to fend for snacks myself because I was alone. It was then that I thought about the decision i took to not have fries before I reached the station, although I was extremely tempted to. I talked myself out of eating junk even though foster father said it was okay if I did, and even though I had been a good girl and had my share of green tea and peanuts. Yet, I wanted fries. I restrained, and I was glad. After all, I had had almonds and raisins on the station, before that girl came along.

It has been a successful day of weaning away from cab rides and french fries.

Pat on the back to me.