College Special

Plush lines the metal train, making the steel

Furry and warm. And Araminta's mind

Is furry, as she paces the stone hall.

The flowers lie along her shoulder, breathing.

The pale young man trots dutifully beside.

The Terminal is smooth and proud and wide,

And a neat painted sky roofs it down from the wind.

The tastes of earth grow blander here and thinned

As Araminta clicks along the tiling,

As Araminta buys her single ticket

From a face at a window, as Araminta walks

Patiently and serenely to her train.

The young pale gentleman farewelled, she sits.

The engineer is hot; he grinds the butt at his heel.

The locomotive feels the sharp rebuke of steel on steel.