Autumn Express
Photo copyright: James Rainsford
Racing to horizons where the rails
Appear to meet, but never do,
Travelling forever, side-by-side,
Both leading to the end,
Both linked and needed
But not joined as one.
The journey has begun,
Late autumn sun
Crimson like the last leaves
Lingering on frosty boughs
Lights the backs of houses
As we depart the town.
Trapped behind the carriage-glass
The landscapes pass,
Ephemeral as a movie frame,
Each fleeting scene
A dream of ‘might have been,’
Where other lives are lived
In unfamiliar streets.
No stops now
Before the final destination.
Station after station
Pass into history
As passengers recede
Into the past,
Like ghosts awaiting
Their own journeys
To the last stop on the line.
And for us all
The terminus awaits,
End of the track.
In front the buffers
Stop our journey hence.
Behind, the guard,
His signal now at red,
Ensures we can’t go back.
© James Rainsford 2012
Note to readers: This was inspired by a recent train journey and by my own mortality. Posted to dVerse Poets for Open Link Night on Tuesday 6th November. Your views are most welcome and I'll respond to all who visit here and leave a comment.
Kind regards to all the very talented poets at dVerse. James.
