Train to the City

Boarded a train— left the prairie behind
Heard the wheels rumble over the train track
And I looked out the window at hills flashing by
And I vowed that I never would go back.

The city was busy. The cab drivers shouted
The sights and the sounds filled my mind
Beneath the skyscrapers, in all the confusion,
I forgot what I had left behind.

'Midst smells of the hot dogs and cigarette smoke
And the gum on the sidewalk below,
I wandered around, thinking what I should do
And where would I most like to go.

A museum of paintings was open that day,
So I bought me a pass and looked ‘round.
I saw the whole place, from the top to the bottom
From ceiling right down to the ground.

And it’s strange to report, but a thing that I found out
As through that museum I did roam:
Amongst all those paintings the ones I liked best
Were the ones that remind me of home.

Boarded a train— bade the city farewell
But told it one day I’d stop by.
And my heart sang a song as the train sped along
Toward my home ‘neath the wide prairie sky.

~ © Andrea Grace