Inside my office building the foyer has been transformed into a winter wonderland. Every year the owners of the building go all out with garland, over sized ornaments and a large Christmas tree that is decorated with a well thought out color scheme that really makes the tree the center of attention. This year the color is purple. Not lavender, PURPLE. They surround the bottom of the tree with sheets of cotton that resembles snow and put little twinkle lights under it. There is also an ipad with a fire place on in that plays holiday music. For the last seven years that I have worked in that building one of the building supervisors has put a toy train around the bottom of the tree for at least 3/4 of that time. This year when the tree went up I asked security is Joe going to put the train up. The answer was no. Well, I got hold of Joe and asked him could he please put up his train. He said that he would have to have in sent in from his families home in Mass. and I said, "PLEASE." I think anyone that can put a train around the base of a Christmas tree and make it work is brilliant. I could get the train around the tree but could never get it to run. I was hopeless.
Joe's train was manufactured by LGB & Lehmann, G-scale, Model Dodge City & Great Western Set. Joe received it in 1977 from his parents at Christmas. He has other train sets, one being the Circus Set and approximately 100 feet of track.
I grew up next to train tracks and when I see a train set at Christmas it takes me right back in the past.
The Train Ride
An elderly gentleman sitting at the train station caught my eye
Dressed in a suit leaning on his cane, waiting for the past to glide by
To everyone it looks like a 40 "something" lady gazing out of the train car
When really there's a little girl of 5 taken back to memories afar
As the engine gathers steam and pulls from the station
I let my mind drift back to my childhood, without hesitation
Our house sat next to train tracks just like these
The sound of the trains always put me at ease
As the steam engine moved from the city into the mountains of fall
I stared out the window wanting to see everything, remember it all
The trees on the hillside look like a patchwork quilt
Their leaves different colors, something special GOD has built
I had never been on a train with the steam and ashes flying
I had imagined it many times, I found myself crying
As Children ran and waved to watch us go by
I smiled, waved back, pretended I had ash in my eye
I sat transfixed, unable to move
The wheels clacked on over well worn grooves
The train whistle moaned giving silence a voice
To remind me time moves on, I haven't a choice
These tracks have gone from steam to history
Just going on through time dealing with the mystery
The old folks stand by the tracks and smile
What goes around comes around its been quite a while
My son sat and stared a smile on his face
Thank you GOD for bringing us to this time in space
I left the train station a little girl of five
Returned hours later thankful to be alive
I never realized that it was quite an event
I'm glad I was apart of it, 3 hours well spent.
When I see a Christmas train or any train for that matter. It takes me back to a time when life was so much easier. You see, when I was next to the train tracks I was living with my grandmother. Mother sent us to live with her in the summer's so she could work all the time and not need someone to watch us. JW was usually on a voyage somewhere and I was alone with my little brother. I will tell you about my grandmother at some other time. She deserves a whole page just devoted to her.
Thank you Joe Hollenburger! You have made me forget that Alzheimer lives here, even for a little while. I am grateful.
Phyllis
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