Dead End Town
He stood on the tracks in the middle of town
and thought of yesterday with a weighted frown.
Behind him, a life he chose to forget.
Ahead a new day, beyond the sunset.
Memories of his childhood like a train wreck
left him battered and bruised, a noose 'round the neck.
A mother who left him before he was nine,
a dad who never worked, stayed drunk all the time.
His brother, a hero, lost in the 'Nam war.
His sister, an addict, he could help no more.
Nothing left for him in this dead end town,
and so there he stood taking one last look around.
He heard the train whistle and his heart felt renewed.
With hope for the future, happiness, he pursued.
As he boarded and took his seat on the train,
he waved goodbye to the heartache, goodbye to his pain.
He closed his eyes and fell into peaceful sleep.
Then awoke with one memory, he decided to keep.
Long ago, Grandpa gave him his pocket watch and said,
"Give wings to your soul or you might as well be dead."
Just a boy at the time, he did not understand.
Looking up now, he thanked Grandpa, watch in his hand.
By Rhonda Johnson-Saunders
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