In Transit

Retail work can be seen as boring, frustrating, dead end, and possibly dozens of other words that would make anyone think twice about taking a job in the field. However, where I am employed happens to be a major cultural crossroad. I work at Pentagon City mall in Arlington, Virginia. It may sound like an ideal spot just yet. But let’s talk about the whereabouts of this colorful place.

Arlington is just across the 14th street bridge connecting the Nation’s Capital to Virginia. Arlington is also home to the Pentagon, while Washington DC is home to every known embassy of the world, students, travelers, diplomats, government workers, locals, and the like. All of this is encased within the public transit system named Metro. With living and working in this area, the whole world is at your fingertips almost literally. I will briefly paint a picture of what a day of traveling to work looks like from my perspective.

I live just outside of Washington DC on the Maryland side of the Tri-state area. I usually take a relatively short bus ride in order to get me to the station to travel to work. Public transportation in itself in the DC area can be just as diverse. There are ladies with beautiful hijabs, and colorful traditional African dress. One of these beautiful strangers usually recognizes one of their own and happily greets them with three kisses, alternating cheeks. They begin chatting in a familiar tounge, frantically exchanging giggles and smiles. The other passengers don’t seem to notice because it is an everyday thing. Not too far away from me is an elderly Hispanic couple sitting with stoic facial expressions and limited conversation. Just before their stop, the man gently grabs his wife’s hand, kisses her on the cheek, and grabs her cane just as the bus comes to a halt. He helps her along at only the speed she is able to go. Just as they get off, a middle-aged African-American man gets on and takes his seat in close proximity to the bus driver. His booming voice is filled with a warm greeting to the driver and along the bus route they talk about work, family, and upcoming football games. Right across from me another African-American man pokes fun and the others’ team choices and all three carry on in conversation, not having known each other previously, until the final destination.   Just as everyone is let off, I look around outside and head inside the train station for another adventure.