Metro Map & A Story

The other day I took the Metro to go somewhere. I had to change at the interchange station (Majestic) and move from one line to the other.

I am not a frequent user of the metro. So, I didn���t know the order of the stations in different lines. But I found the metro map that was outside the station and inside the train useful.

I watched it from time to time. I could figure out exactly which train in which direction and on which line to take. It was easy to wait for the station as I watched the map inside the train and figured out where to change and how.

Finally, it was easy to find where to alight and which exit to take to get to where I wanted to go. I am making it sound as if taking the metro is otherwise a complicated thing. It is not.

That’s not the point.

The point is this. The Metro Map is easy to use. But it is not an accurate representation of reality. It is just a map to help you get to the destination.

The straight lines, the precise directions, the simple connections between stations, the accurate way to the exit – all of them are not real.

Reality is far different. There are twisted tracks ��� they are not straight. There are underground tunnels and overground bridges which the map doesn���t show.

There are crooked walks with escalators up and down even on the interchange. There are crowds to handle and turns to take. Reality has lots of details that are not there in the map.

Which is exactly why the maps are good and useful. Because it is a story well told.

It is a good story, simply because it drops all the unnecessary details and gets to the point. It just tells you what to do next to get to the destination without telling you how exactly.

Much like a good story which goes from one scene to another seamlessly without any fuss, telling us what is necessary, without bothering us about the unnecessary details.

Show and tell – in the minimum words. That’s why the metro map is a good story well told.

A story does not have to get into the complete version of reality. Reality has lots of things unnecessary for the story. What you skip makes it a good story.

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