See Right Through Me

I was invisible this morning. I know this because a pickup truck cut me off as if I wasn't there. I would have dismissed this as crazed Boston driving, but I encountered the same eerie feeling while waiting for the train. People who were clearly in my path didn't step aside for me to pass by. Each time I walked around someone, he or she stared down the tracks at the invisible train. When the train arrived, we all climbed aboard, silently, invisibly.

I took my usual seat by the window and put on my sunglasses, falling in and out of sleep with the rhythm of the train. A young, attractive woman sat opposite me and began to fuss with her hair and make-up. At first I was reluctant to glance in her direction, but my new-found power emboldened me. She never once looked up.

At South Station, the herd was released. No one looked to the right or left. A vendor offered free newspapers to everyone but me. A well-dressed man handing out glossy pamphlets nearly broke the spell...

smiling at someone else
the stranger shakes my hand
and asks for my vote