The Leaving Train
by Danny C. Wash
We are always leaving from something.
When we’re born we leave our mother.
When we are about six we leave for school.
When we are grown we leave our parent’s home.
I grew up & left my parents to marry my wife.
We had children and they left us for their lives.
When my mother was old she was the first to leave.
When my father was old, part of his mind had left
already. He was in a nursing home and I would visit him
and we would talk. One day he said, “they were taking up
a load down there on a train to leave the other night, but I
didn’t leave with them.” And then one day he got his ticket
to leave on that train. He still struggled with it, but then
finally left on the train that was taking up folks. We don’t
always decide when to leave and be taken up on that train. But,
some day we all will get our ticket and ride on the Leaving Train.
