Anyone who knows me knows I LOVE the city. I love the hustle and bustle of it, I love the sounds and smells of it, I love how small I feel in the center of the oh-so-tall buildings, and I love the variety of experiences available.
And while I absolutely adore having adult time in the city (however rare that is), I equally adore taking my kiddos into the city.
Now, many people will agree that taking the kids into Boston is a great thing to do. They even agree that they just don’t get out there enough. What they don’t agree on is the mode of transportation we take.
Living in a commuter town, most folks like to drive — especially with kids. I, however, take the T. Every. Single. Time.
Initially, when we moved to the area from Texas four years ago, we took the T for the novelty of it. They don’t have subway systems in Texas, and participating in the subway culture of Boston made us feel like such big city folk. Maybe there is still some novelty to it (after all, it can get pretty boring in the ‘burbs), but to us, there’s more to it than that.
When you take the T, a whole new world is opened up — especially to a kid. A kid’s perspective of the world can be pretty narrow when you live in a suburb made up of similar demographics. Take them out of it, and it’s amazing how open their eyes become. Every race, religion, income level, etc. seems to co-exist within that one car you ride in. With everything from the young Harvard student to the elderly couple with the weathered faces, the tired single mom to the business executive just trying to get home after a long day on the job, I love that my kids get a true understanding of differences, whether that means skin color, socioeconomic status, or job.
When you take the T, you begin to understand Boston a little bit better — the accents, the layout of the city, the attitudes (good and bad!), and the overall culture. To a transplant, these things are pretty interesting. I mean, let’s be honest… we are still amazed by the accent.
When you take the T, the “are we there yets” and the constant fighting between siblings that takes place in the back of my car disappear. Not only can I sit between the children in an effort to curb the arguing, I can chat with them about all the external stimuli we are experiencing.
Sure, the T may have its faults. It may run slow sometimes. It may stink. You may hear foul language. But such is life, and I think it’s important for my kids to know that not everything is as picture perfect as our quaint little suburb. The world is gritty. The world is real. And that is why, for me and my family, we will take the T — every single time.
