The Journey That Taught Me Life

7 September 2026

A new beginning. A new lesson. Another day of life.

I woke up early in the morning, around 4:00 AM.

As always, I prepared myself for another journey to Guwahati. At 5:44 AM, I boarded the Mairabari–Guwahati Passenger (55604) from Haibargaon Railway Station.

That morning, I noticed something different.

I went into a coach that had only four seats and was designated for passengers with disabilities. There were no passengers with disabilities using it that morning, so I sat there.

The coach was surprisingly clean, quiet, spacious and comfortable. With only four seat, there was plenty of room around me. I enjoyed the peacefulness of that coach.

As I sat there, I started thinking about something I have noticed during my daily journeys.

Every day, I see different people.

Different faces.

Different expressions.

Different lives.

Sometimes I feel that I see 100 to 200 different faces in a single day during my travels. I don't know their names or their stories, but for a few moments, our journeys become connected.

Every person is going somewhere.

Every person has somewhere to return to.

Every person has a story.

That day, I did not need to change trains. The passenger train was running on time, and everything went smoothly.

At around 9:00 AM, I reached Guwahati and went to my university.

My classes continued from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM.

After class, I began my return journey.

At around 4:30 PM, I boarded the Kamrup Express (15959) from Guwahati towards Dibrugarh.

But that day, the train was running late.

While the train was arriving, I witnessed something that made me very nervous.

A family was running towards the moving train, trying to board it one by one. Railway police officers were warning them and trying to stop them from attempting something so dangerous.

Eventually, they managed to board the train safely.

I was relieved that nobody was hurt.

But watching them run after a moving train made me think about how dangerous such a decision can be.

A train is not worth risking a life for.

Especially when children, elderly people, or women are travelling, the danger can become even greater.

I found a sleeper seat and continued my journey towards Chaparmukh Junction, reaching there at around 5:20 PM.

I then waited for the next train towards Nagaon.

At around 7:30 PM, I reached Nagaon Town on the Guwahati–Silghat Town DEMU (75729).

Another journey was coming to an end.

But there was one more moment from that day that stayed with me.

During my journey on the Kamrup Express, I recorded my train journey on video for the first time.

While I was doing that, I saw a person begging inside the train.

The sight was heartbreaking.

Both of the person's legs appeared to be badly injured. Several fingers were missing or severely damaged, and there was visible bleeding from the hand.

I felt deeply disturbed and sad after seeing the condition of that person.

I had been sitting comfortably in a train, travelling towards my destination, thinking about my classes, my future, and my everyday life.

But just a few feet away from me was someone struggling simply to survive.

That moment made me look at my own life differently.

Every day, I complain about being tired.

I worry about being late.

I worry about my studies.

I worry about my future.

But there are people whose struggles are much more difficult than the problems I think are so big.

That day, once again, the railway journey became a lesson.

I began the morning sitting alone in a quiet coach.

During the day, I saw hundreds of unfamiliar faces.