Jammin’ On The Journey Of Life

Desperately making my way back home on the bus from university the other day, I had the big misfortune of being stuck in a traffic jam around London’s bustling Liverpool Street.

Commuters who’ve experienced the joy of a cacophony of horns blowing, waving fists, and an endless sea of vehicles, you’d understand why I was far from amused.

Inside the bus pandemonium had broken loose: there were at least half a dozen people having a chin wag on their mobile phones to recipients that could be mistaken for being in another country. I mean, is there really any need to talk that loud when your mouth is right next to the phone, and I assume that the person on the other end has their ear right next to their phone?

Meanwhile, two female passengers felt it necessary to serenade us all with songs in Hindi, whilst a baby on the lower deck decided to express its disgust with the situation by screaming its head off. Filled with an emotion I can only describe as ill- feeling, I reached into my bag to get out my trusty iPod only to see on the screen ‘battery is low’. Damn! By this time, a sneaky little headache had begun and my left temple was pulsating like mad.

I looked at my watch to check out just how long I had been in hell for when I overheard two young guys behind me talking about serious life issues. One was upset that his girlfriend thought the solution to all their relationship problems was to get married, whilst the other was occupied with the thought that he might lose his job.

I found myself eavesdropping in on their conversation for the next twenty minutes, smiling at many of their comments, giggling softly to myself as well as reflecting on some of the difficult journeys I have overcome in my short life so far. By the time I knew it we were out of the traffic zone, my headache had miraculously disappeared, and I was twenty-five minutes away from home sweet home. It’s funny (funny interesting not funny haha) that when forced to be surrounded by people you would normally avoid that you come to realise we’re all very similar. We all have dreams, aspirations and anxieties. Life brings about so many worries as it is.

Stressing about a twenty-minute gridlock is one less worry we should have. After all, I’m grateful that I can even get onto a bus to travel around this buzzing cosmopolitan city. Next time I’m stuck in traffic – I hope not too soon – I’ll remember not to let silly minor things get to me. After all, life can be a traffic jam in itself. Tutting, sighing and kissing your teeth every ten seconds isn’t going to get you out of the jam. Only by staying calm can we escape the hustle and bustle and begin to enjoy the journey we call life.