A Cooking Stanza in the Subway

By Angel Ruby Vasquez

Photo by Angel Ruby Vasquez. February 20, 2026

I was at the West Fourth Street platform when the scent reached me before her, even before

the D train hummed through the tunnels with its tired heartbeat. This morning, the air carried a warmth seasoned memory not belonging to concrete or steel, but to a kitchen, to a home.

I followed it. 

And there she was, a woman standing beside a shopping cart converted into a stove. A small hot pot sat on top, steam rising like a prayer that followed her quiet rhythmic joy, older than the station, while she stirred her food with a quiet joy, with a Caribbean accent older than the city, older than the struggle that placed her there to nourish a place that nourishes none.

People walked past her as if she were part of the architecture, a column, a sticker, a bench, a shadow, a background noise, while I tried to write a poem.

Dust. Cleansing. Hot pot. Joy and Shelter.

God’s Grace.

A living balanced stanza in a shopping cart

                                     in the Subway. 

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Angel Ruby Vasquez is a writer, actor, filmmaker, and poet-storyteller dedicated to the craft of inspirational creative writing. His work spans film, radio, fashion media, and education. He has worked as a camera assistant, public radio announcer, media director, educational facilitator, and substitute teacher.

Angel Ruby Vasquez es escritor, actor, cineasta y poeta-narrador, dedicado al arte de la escritura creativa inspiradora. Su trabajo abarca el cine, la radio, los medios de comunicación de moda y la educación. Ha trabajado como asistente de cámara, locutor de radio pública, director de medios y como facilitador educativo y profesor sustituto.