morning on the subway

The hat lay on the floor of the subway car, just inside the doors. The young woman reached down and picked it up, looking at the older woman who was already halfway down the platform, unaware that as she was about to head out into the cold, her hat was on its way to the Bronx. The young woman looked at me, standing midway between them. The doors chimed and the announcement came over the speaker: "Stand clear of the closing doors, please." We made eye contact and I reached my hands out to catch the hat, now arcing through the air, as it came sailing through the closing doors. My hands made contact as I saw the young woman, now behind glass, nod approvingly. I ran down the platform to the older woman and tapped her on the shoulder. She turned, and I held her hat out to her. She smiled a thank you and I raced up the stairs into the winter morning.