We Talk of Trains
Road signs, riddled with bullet holes,
executed for the mathematical precision
with which they spell out isolation,
define and witness the desert loneliness.
We talk of oceans, beaches beyond horizons,
valleys hidden in the mountains, extinct volcanoes,
ruins and the railroad tracks following the highway.
A crumpled taco wrapper flutters up from the backseat.
Someone grabs it before it escapes out the window.
Dust devils swirl outside, wrestling earth and sky,
spinning proof that everything only wants to escape.
We talk our dreams in circles, always
winding up at the same rest stop, a teepee-shaped
gas station, the movie we’ll make when we get home.
A train rumbles alongside us; sharp-edged
graffiti decorates boxcars. We wonder about people
who painted their anger on a train in Saint Louis
only to watch it disappear into the desert.
—
“We Talk of Trains” and the accompanying photo “Train in Round Rock” were first published together in ouroboros review #3 (July 2009).
James Brush is a teacher and writer who lives in Austin, TX. He tries to get outside as much as possible.
The distance speaks with clarity and a speeding sense of isolation. Wonderful piece.
Thanks, Tumblewords.
I can see why it was published, James. I love this…
Thank you, Mark. I’m thinking about posting more of these previously published elsewhere things.
Great last stanza!
Thanks, twitches.
A distinguished addition to the long canon of railroad (railway, really!) verse. Driven by a sense of restless movement through a shifting landscape and isolation. Great pic too.
Thanks, Dick. There’s something about trains in the desert that inspires poems and country songs.
James, so much I love about this poem. The isolation you have created is palpable. A vivid depiction of the desert roads.
btw I got your chapbook in the mail yesterday.
I love it, thanks so much.
Pamela
Thanks, Pamela, and I’m glad you got the chap and that you’re enjoying it.