The Midlanders
..a man was killed on the tracks, today.
I waited on platform two
for the train coming down from Glasgow.
Today... damp,cold,misty day in the north.
This middle England...
(Trains with no drivers)
of semis and trees...
(Drivers with no trains.)
ponies,cows and sheep.
A reassuring voice
reminds us
to take care when stepping down onto the platform.
Patient passengers
gaze silently
through
steamed up carriage windows .
Travelling in timelessness
each cocooned in their own dramas.
Business men,young mothers,grandparents.
Wheels turn almost without noise
over tracks...
and
in the trees
crows await rich pickings.
Going home
this is England
at it's most crowded.
Middle and everything.
All languages, all sizes, all ages.
All trying to get home.
Some get on the train.
Some abandon the try....
Far from home...
Far from the destination.
Now I believe what they tell me...
...everything in everyway
ends in chaos.
Going home
this is England
at it's most crowded.
Middle and everything.
All languages, all sizes, all ages.
All trying to get home.
Some get on the train.
Some abandon the try....
Far from home...
Far from the destination.
Now I believe what they tell me...
...everything in everyway
ends in chaos.
whew...chaos i would say...everyone trying to get home...and one that never will...had to be a pretty intense moment...
ReplyDeletefixed your link for you...smiles.
Brian ...you are a gem!...things are a bit hectic here at the Potters House at the moment and I gave up!!!
DeleteGlad that you liked the thoughts.
Love how you have described the scene...wonderful, put me right there in it.
ReplyDeletethankyou for your kind comment...travel in a crowded country!
DeleteGerry,
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by...this is a wonderfully lyric bit. The opening tells us it's not going to be a cheerful memoir, and you take us on a small journey on that most interesting of transport means...The station, the passengers, even the trips themselves can indeed seem like chaos. I enjoyed this thoughtful, superbly balanced string of images. Well done.
thankyou for that Steve..it took me a while to sort out the lines and the rhythms.
DeleteI saw the UK by train on my first trip - every bit of it when it was all British Rail and I felt I was there again in this fine piece. The natural need for British order does get thrown into chaos, when tragedy occurs, and when things seem to fall like dominoes. Engaging piece, I liked it much.
ReplyDeletethankyou beachanny....they are messing with something that isn't broken....but I suppose that's what they get paid for!!!
Delete