Waiting at Farragut North
/NaBeela Washington
There’s often a soft yet ferocious rumble that escapes the inner gall of the looming tunnel before a gush of wind wisps behind tucked thighs, caresses the nape of your neck, sends a chill up several vertebrae, turns your attention toward the slender train skirring past you. It is in those moments that you forget the stench of urine between the scuffed grout of the platform, contorted drink bottles, half-eaten pastries, distant laughter, the subtle jingle of keys. You think of texting what’s left of your father but remember his dull syllables from conversations years ago. Instead, you rise to board, sliding doors spread to absorb each passerby, swallow us whole.
Author’s Note: "Waiting at Farragut North" is one of 20+ poems that comprise an upcoming chapbook of poems confronting the absence of my father and the effects of growing up in a single-parent home. I wrote this particular poem while waiting for a train in DC.
I eventually met my father at the age of 18 but our time together was fleeting and not exactly what I imagined it would be. As I waited on the train, I thought about reconnecting with him as some years had passed. I reflected on what being solely responsible for his 'second coming' (and going) meant and if that was what I really wanted. There were a few of us on the platform at the time and I kind of just let the approaching train, the filth of the station, and my feelings take hold of me. In a way, this poem is about acceptance of the things you cannot change, but also an admission that says "I am not content with the way things are, but that's just how they are". You can either choose to board your train and move forward or remain tethered to the what ifs. And I chose to board.
An emerging Black poet, NaBeela Washington was invited to read her poetry by the Takoma Park Poetry Reading Series and has been published in The Cincinnati Review, The Washington Writers’ Publishing House, Juke Joint Magazine, perhappened mag, and others. She recently earned her Masters in Creative Writing and English at Southern New Hampshire University.
Her Twitter handle is @_simplybee
Read our interview with NaBeela Washington here.
