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Saturday, January 21, 2017

On the Train

On the Train  

Lining the rail corridor, pines nodded their white caps in respect as our passenger train climbed a gentle incline. Aroma of fresh coffee made me smile. A newcomer to train travel, I was enthralled with the steady rocking of the car. My breakfast was served with professional aplomb. White napkins, stylish dinner wear and silver cutlery. Passengers chatted quietly in the early morning. Breaking through the conversations, a cheerful voice over the speaker had heads up and not a few worried frowns. A blizzard was forecast for later in the morning. Looking out my frosted window, I watched as the wind chased loose fine snow alongside the train. The beautiful landscape was blurred at the edges. Only shredded strips of gilded orange sky were visible in the building clouds. My joy of this first train ride in such a beautiful snowscape was juxtaposed with the principles of safety - principles I hadn’t thought of when buying my tickets. I relaxed when our porters brought to our tables the safety protocols to follow should the blizzard warnings hold true. I opened my leather bound journal, uncapped my pen and began to describe the story of my train trip.

“We all wind up drawn to waht we’re afraid of, drawn 
to try to find a way to make ourselves safe from a thing
 by crawling inside of it, by loving it, by becoming it.”

~ Holly Black, The Coldest Girl in Coldtown

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