No Room

Of all the exciting things we have seen this year, Sebastian has loved riding the trains in Germany most of all. We usually ride the S-Bahn, or the street trains, on a regular day. We'll sit at the train stop and face the direction the train is supposed to come. When he first spots the red engine gliding our way, he is excited every time. We roll into the car with extra room for bikes and strollers and look out the window for cows, water, or wind turbines. But on our way to Berlin, we got to ride the ICE, or the fast train. Since our connection was a few minutes late, we were worried we wouldn't make it to the ICE in time! We barely hoisted the stroller and our suitcase into the car before the door started closing and the train took off.

While we normally like to find the car with extra room, we didn't have time to walk up and down the train to look for it. And I'm not even sure there was a car like on this train. With a stroller and a suitcase, there was no room for us to sit. So we sat in the doorway next to the trash and bathrooms. 

In the car in front of us, a few single riders placed their bags in the seat next to them to prevent a stranger from sitting next to them. In the car behind us, a large group of men partied with beers in hand. Sebastian honestly couldn't tell the difference between where everyone else was sitting and where we were. He drove his toy car along the walls and jumped in the small space between the doors to the seats and the doors to the bathrooms. It was loud, so it masked his cheerful toddler noises that might have annoyed the seated passengers.

With Livia in my arms, I sat directly across from the bathrooms and watched passenger after passenger open the door while the toilet was flushing. I would periodically move to the side so that others could throw their coffee cups away. No one asked whether I'd like to sit in a seat. No one gave up their place for the tired woman with a baby.

But then I thought of Mary . . . when there was no room for her.

And tears filled my eyes. And peace filled my heart. And suddenly the train went quiet.