Thoughts of Subway Riding this early morning

I really do miss riding the subway, daily.  I even kind of miss the crowdedness of the trains during rush hour - all of them.  To ride the train is to experience all kinds of cultural and social forms - great rudeness and even more kindness... frustration and wonder... selfishness and compassion... the very young and the very old - it is all here.  Perhaps I'm waxing nostalgic, since I rarely ride the subway these days, but on Monday night as I was traveling to and from seeing Willie's musical (Willie Martinez is a parishioner and Jazz leader - he is the drummer for the band), "This Side of Paradise" about Zelda and F. Scott Fitzgerald, it felt good sitting on the subway and watching the people and their interactions, seeing the "up and coming" cultural changes, the vast array of cultures and dress and languages and attitudes, and knowing that this is New York City, the center of the known world.