Free Harriet Beamer Takes the Bus by Joyce Magnin

station was only a few minutes long, not enough time to form a real connection anyway.
    Six minutes later Harriet’s stop came up. She wasn’t the only one getting off, and in some odd way that made her feel as though she was part of a group.
    Harriet checked with Amelia one final time. Amelia still said that Winston-Salem, North Carolina, would be her next destination by way of Greensboro, with many little towns in between. If she saw something that tickled her fancy along the route, then she’d stop. She had all the time in the world to explore — the entire rest of the spring if she wanted.
    Harriet bused clear to Bowie, Maryland, a lovely suburb of Baltimore. From there it seemed a little more difficult to find connecting buses. So, after several frustrating moments she stopped at a small coffee shop for pie and coffee and asked the waitress if she knew how to get to North Carolina. But the waitress only looked at her like she had sprouted asparagus from her head and asked the cashier who asked the cook who asked the cop sitting at the counter. He made a call on his radio and suggested she hop the Amtrak train in Washington, D.C. Harriet had been to the capital once in her life, and that had been on a school field trip in the sixth grade and at a time when security was not the huge issue it was today. After a round of hearty thank-yous, Harriet boarded a bus to Union Station, where she’d snag a train for North Carolina.
    Washington Union Station was the most incredible place Harriet had ever seen. For a second she thought she might have taken a wrong turn and ended up in Europe outside a palace. The place was huge, so huge she had to grab a map to find her way around. Itwas like its own city, complete with shops and restaurants. It was here that Harriet decided to purchase jeans.
    The station was more like a big mall. She checked a large, lighted directory and found her way to Chico’s on the mezzanine level. It took the better part of half an hour, but Harriet finally settled on a pair of light blue denim jeans that just barely reached her ankles. The important thing was that they fit comfortably around her middle.
    “Thank you very much,” she said to the young saleswoman. She seemed a bit jaded for being only around thirty, Harriet thought. Then again she must see millions of people pass through the station every day. It was old hat to her. But for Harriet, purchasing jeans at a train station was something extraordinary and unique. On her way back to the train platform Harriet was delighted when she found a Godiva Chocolatier on the concourse level. She would have to tell Martha.
    Harriet had a one-hour wait before the Crescent train was scheduled to leave the station at 6:30 p.m. This did not make her happy. She was starting to feel tired and was anxious to settle into a comfy train seat and rest. Harriet found a store that sold magazines. She purchased two postcards, one with a picture of the Washington Union Station and another with a picture of the National Aquarium.
    “Martha will love this,” she said, looking at the Union Station postcard. “She’ll be so impressed that I am here and finding my way around.”
    Harriet decided to send the National Aquarium postcard to Henry and Prudence. She found a bench to sit on and wrote out her postcards. First to Henry. She wrote:
    I was here for a little while. Enjoyed my stay. Saw many fish.
    I’m on my way. Kiss Humphrey for me.
    Love, Mother.
    Next she wrote to Martha.
    I thought you would enjoy seeing this. The picture doesn’t do it justice. A person could live here. It has everything you need. Spectacular.
    Love, Harriet.
    She dropped the cards in a mailbox. On her way to the platform she came across a souvenir shop where she was able to find a set of salt and pepper shakers in the shape of the Washington Monument and the White House. The Monument was the pepper. From there it was a short walk to her platform where she found another bench closer to the