When my son was small he loved trains
We'd ride the Metro to Union Station
At least once a week
To see the hulking, diesel-powered engines
That pull the Amtrak;
Feeling their motors rumble through our bodies
As they waited to carry passengers to Philadelphia,
New York or all the way down to Florida.

Now I ride the Metro to work alone
He is on a different train altogether
One with a far more powerful engine
Pulling him into adolescence and, eventually,
Adulthood.
I can only run alongside him for now
Shouting encouragement, trying to look happy
Hoping he comes back to visit often
As his train gathers steam
And pulls away from the station