Memories of Train Travel

I traveled by train

for years—

moving from city to city

in my native India.

I preferred the sleeper coach,

so I could peek out of

the open window

and take pictures.

Like the one above:

a misty winter morning,

Hundreds of palmyra palms

standing like sentinels,

paddy fields below,

and flocks of egrets

foraging together.

What joys to behold

such serendipitous spectacles!

They can’t be found in

urban sprawl

or the crowded zoos.

The soul is soothed

by such experiences—

I can bet on that.

Now that I am immigrant

and mostly homebound

I cherish the train travels

and the fleeting glimpses

of the natural world

which enriched me.