A retired banker and a retired nurse
and a man of few words
Sitting down for lunch over rails
wondering what sunny skies could be assured
A poet going for a twofer on the
solar lights out show
While for the retired couple his
knowledge of the Great Land to bestow
Only on a train instead of cooped up
in an uncaring plane
Sadly late into SLO so a dash for
Thai, Cajun or Italian to be restrained
Pinching pennies in business class
hoping to see Jack London on time
An upgrade to a sleeper and the
winken, blinken and nod dreamy rhymes
Quicker to fly a fact no one at this
distance could ever deny
In a world where time is precious
and can never be regained a question is why
Traveling on two ribbons of steel a
journey into the past
How long will long distance travel
by train continue to last?
Billions upon billions in a rising
tide of red ink
Without the federal dole Amtrak
would into oblivion sink
Nothing like being awash in scenery
while being forced to make new friends
A view that it is the travel not the
destination that is the new vacation trend
Even for an 8 footer all the leg
room would ever need
Though lacking 5 stars better than
peanuts that airlines feed
If only Amtrak could carry freight
And not run the risk of being hours
late
The federal purse could be closed,
carbon footprint reduced
More people would be boarding to the
romance of the rails to be seduced
© August 19, 2017 Michael P. Ridley
the Alaskanpoet
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