The Man Beside Me

A man on a train car wonders of his fellow traveler and his ghost.

Oh what it must look like,

this reflection of a man.

Eyes as present as the past or future gone to plan.

Jaw as tight as travelers trunk,

sealed with wax and lock and chain.

Such eyes have never known a smile,

though those laugh lines betray.

Wonder...

One must wonder.

Those hands folded neatly reveal too many scars to guess.

Out and open for the world to see,

like that ancient look he wears.

Coat and jeans and boots and belt,

must have made him look the rogue.

But lost and staring out...

One must wonder.

Could it be that what he sees another must have once before?

Where's that man, he once must have lived.

Such a life he must have lived.

One must wonder what it must look like,

This reflection of a man.  

Author's Note

I happened upon a traveler in a train car headed home from San Diego during a rough period in my life. I was visiting family. I shared a train box with a stranger, an older man that I had never met. We didn't have much of a conversation, but I remember his look when I walked in and sat down. He seemed very sad. And lost. But maybe that was what I was feeling. I think I wrote this to help myself explain a feeling in another. Maybe I was the reflection. Or maybe he was. Sometimes life will give you that kind of moment. The memory is clear. I'll never forget it.