Tracks

Walking on the tracks

the whistle of the train echoes

from a mile away.

I progress

one step at a time.

The rail vibrates under my feet

as the train advances closer.

I can see the engine now

only yards away.

I stop and stare,

watching as it heads towards me.

One hundred yards.

Fifty yards.

The whistle sounds

and I am face to face

with the magnificent machine.

A monstrous beast

traversing towards me

threatens my destruction.

Urgency and fear

force me to step aside.

I watch the engine

and cars pass.

The wind blows past me

sending chills through my body.

Ten,

Twenty,

Thirty cars rumble across the rail.

Eventually a hundred or more

speed across the line.

Finally the caboose zooms past.

I watch the train fade away.

Back on the tracks,

I continue on.