Yellow Cab - Nov 29 2023

 

Yellow Cab

Nov 29 2023

From my seat behind the driver

I found myself distracted

by the back of his head,

bobbing to a soundtrack

of Bollywood songs.

A glance

in the rear view mirror

and I quickly looked away,

the queasy feeling

of the street receding

in its off-kilter tilt.

So I turned

to the steamed-up window

and watched the city rushing past,

resting my cheek

against the cool tempered glass.

The fan blasted

hot recycled air,

the radio crackled

on-and-off

with the dispatcher's gravel voice.

There is something glamorous

about a Yellow Cab

in the city after dark.

Especially in winter,

snuggled into the corner

of the big back seat.

Busy streets

city lights

flashing neon signs,

snow

falling through the cone

of the taxi's bobbing lights.

Contained

in its warm hushed interior,

protected from the cold

and churned-up slush;

not in any rush . . .

or thinking of much . . .

and trusting the driver to drive.

He wants to know where I’m from

because he can clearly tell,

and I mention a place

he's never heard of;

the small town boy,

wide-eyed

in the big city

for his first time.

Like a cab ride

in a classic movie

in grainy black and white.

Humphrey Bogart, perhaps

or Clark Gable,

slipping a cigarette

from a crumpled cellophane pack.

But instead

it's just me

in the back seat

with no one at my side.

Where is my Audrey Hepburn

or Lauren Bacall?

My leading lady,

eager ingenue?