The Locomotive

A poem describing the fear of death through an analogy of a train.

The Locomotive

At a train station, I sit waiting.

A whistle cries out in the distance, through fog and clouds,

The track rickets and creaks as the old trolley pulls closer.

Smoke rises in the distant and becomes one with the fog surrounding us,

Mountains and trees hide it before me, yet I know it is there.

Waiting on the bench, my head is ever locked towards the east,

Awaiting the aged car to come for me.

My ticket in hand, my palms sweat and clench.

“Will the train be dirty or uncomfortable?”

“Will the rider be cruel and abrasive?”

“Will the journey be long?”

The ride to my true home dreads me, as all I have ever known is left behind.

My shoe taps with the beat of the tracks. My heart pounds with call of the horn.

My lungs seem to inhale and exhale with the wheels of the car.

My stomach is tied in knots and grumbles in agony.

My eyes try and burn through the fog, to get a glimpse of that train, to no avail.

My watch ticks loudly, becoming almost deafening.

I sweat through my clothes, and bones quake with the rails.

My thoughts pour from my head, cascading down me like a waterfall.

Chills run through my back, and Goosebumps pimple my skin,

The hairs of my arms erect up straight, and my teeth grind up against one another.

In the distance, I hear its call once more, it draws my attention away from me,

I look, unable to see it, but ever knowing it moves on towards me.

Author's Note

What do you think? I legitimately like this piece and want to better it. Anything you think works or doesn't work let me know, if you have any ideas of what to add please let me know too. I want to add more descriptive language so I'll be working on that. Thanks for reading! =)

Reviews

[Brad Rancourt]

Very good! I really like the analogy of death coming by a train. There are a few things I would change in here, just in way of making a better rhyming scheme. It still seems a little choppy when being read. But other then that very good!

[(JR) Joshua Hernandez]

Sick! Thanks! I'll get working on that!

[Brad Rancourt]

Let me know what you come up with! Would like to see the finished product!