The Natural Mystic of Riding In Moving Vehicles

by Lauren Rains
on January 27th, 2011
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“What is the meaning of life? What is my purpose and why am I here? Who am I? Where am I going? Where do I even want to go? How far have I come? How long will I last? What does this moment mean in the grand scheme of things?”

These are the questions that tend to mold my thoughts when I find myself staring out the window on a train or a bus as a get closer to wherever my final destination may be. Oftentimes these questions can run so deep they can be overwhelming, but in the right situation the answers to them are quite easily found.

In fact, some of my happiest most peaceful moments where everything just seemed to fit together correctly and the answers to those questions inspired instead of daunted occurred while I was on a loud city bus or a rickety train.

My Time On Trains

I remember this one time when we were taking the Orient Express from Hat Yai, Vietnam to the border closest to China. We had upgraded to a suite with a full size bed. (Yes. Way!) This was pure luxury compared to other train travel trips I’ve been on like the 13 hour ride through Malaysia and Thailand sitting in an upright hard seat with florescent lights on throughout the night. I slept with my sweatshirt on backwards and my hood over my face. I smile at that memory.

This particular train ride on the Orient Express was special in a different way. I’ll always remember lying comfortably in that bed next to a guy I loved and staring out the window as the sun set, and then watching the full moon as it would disappear behind the trees every so often.

We got up and walked over to the doors between the two train cars and opened them wide to watch the world pass by. There were fields burning and I could see village lights in the distance. The breeze was warm and the air was humid. We were dirty as hell from the past few days of travel, but it didn’t matter to us.

It was one of those moments when everything really just came together for me. I felt content. I felt at peace. I felt happy.

I’ve learned to never take those kinds of moments for granted.

As I type this in my room that’s sitting still on a solid foundation molded into the ground, I can still feel the movement of that train. That’s how vivid the memory is etched into my mind.

The Zen Of Moving Vehicles

There’s something about watching a setting sun over the mountains through a window on a moving vehicle.

There’s something magical about feeling a warm breeze on your face as you fly past vast and empty fields and small villages in between.

There’s something profound about waking up on a plane to find the sun rising.

There’s something inspiring about watching the thousands of lights and buildings pass you by as you stare out the open window of a city bus.

I’ve gained a lot of memories in my twenty three years of existence. I’ve done some amazing things like gone sky diving, ridden elephants, and camped on the Great Wall.

Yet for whatever reason, I like to think back to these times on rattling trains and buses when I felt at peace and I felt truly content more than anything else.

There’s just something about sitting still on a moving vehicle. Somehow life just makes more sense when you’re stuck on them and you’ve got nothing else to do but enjoy the moment.

Lauren Rains

Lauren Rains is a crazy, sexy, cool chick on a mission to live a life of abundant adventure, meaning, and substance. She is addicted to the following: WORLD TRAVEL: Experiencing new languages, cute boys, outdoor adventure, crazy transportation, variations on toilets, cultural differences and similarities, crazy food. Everything! WEB 2.0: Web design to social media, she's proud to be a dedicated geek. ENTREPRENEURSHIP: At 12 months she knew she couldn't work for the Machine. WRITING: Check out TheMadtoLive where she blogs about how to live the wild, crazy and meaningful life we're all meant to live! You can also start up a conversation with her about the meaning of life on Twitter at @LaurRains.