Down the driveway and along the sidewalk
Fallen leaves whisper underfoot of a teetering post-toddler
Through the front yard and over the fence
Laughter of the leaves grows louder under velcroed shoes
Up a tree and over the great stone wall
Crunches and snaps and crackles in twigs under bunny eared sneakers
A long trail long silent
A railway lingering in disuse
The new conductor’s symphony of nature has covered over the tracks of the predecessor
The Railroad never known in its operation to a child who has only lived so long
The roaring machine only ever imagined by the little girl from the now silent house next door
So she imagines her own music
She imagines not the roar or the shaking of the earth
But the thrum of the engine as a heartbeat
The honk of the horn as a hello
A soundtrack to all she can see past the front yard
Everywhere The Railroad can take her beyond the fence