A Train at Sunset

As the train rattles through the countryside I look out upon the fields of green and the purple mountains off in the distance. My mind takes in the beauty of this ancient feeling place. As the sun prepares to set the sky shimmers with red, pink, purple and blue. We slowly roll up to a farm in which an old man, lean yet sturdy, puts down his hoe and rests it against his shoulder. He looks up at the train and wipes his brow, and from under his hat you can see a slight reflection of his eyes as they catch the sight of the train. He raises his hand and starts to wave at the train. My mind begins to wonder, what is this old man waving at? Am I the only one who sees this? Is he waving at me?

            His hand moves slowly back and forth as if he sees someone he knows. Perhaps a child on the train waving at him, or maybe a loved one who will be getting off at the next stop. Maybe danger lies ahead and like a grim reaper he is bidding us farewell from this plane of existence, or maybe just me. The old man continues to wave expressionless as the train rolls by. Perhaps he waves at all the trains. Like a child seeing a train, running next to it waving at the conductor, hoping for a whistle. Has this man lived here his whole life? Digging in the field, waving at passing trains. His old eyes have seen much, seen many passing trains, some with people on it, some with cargo. Does he wave at the trains with no one on them, or does he hope for someone to see him and wave back, to remember him. Is he alone? When war saw this land he was a young man. Did he fight? Did he hide? Did he lose his family?

            I open my eyes and look out the window to the fields of green and purple mountains in the far distance. I look for the waving old man but cannot find him. Was I asleep and dreaming? It felt so real. Perhaps he was a figment of my imagination. As the train rounds the bend I look out and see the old man standing there, but this time he is not waving he just stares, holding the hoe staring at the train, staring at me.