Hi, everyone! Welcome to my blog.
It’s the third week of the month! Time for a #PhotoPrompt
Aishwarya, aka, Kitty from Kitty’s Verses, was Colleen’s selection from last month’s challenge. She has provided the photo for this month’s challenge. Remember, don’t just describe what is in the photo. Engage your senses and work with implied metaphors to make your poetry sing!

It’s been a while since I’ve ridden on a train. I rode the trains to school in NYC. It was boring and scary at times.
Fun, adventure and excitement comes to mind when I gaze at the prompt picture, though. There’s something about those tracks leading to infiniti that depict freedom. My imagination goes wild.
The train gets underway, whistling off its baratone warning. Slow it begins, then picks up speed until tons of steel on wheels skim the tracks faster than fairies and witches, on its way to some magic land. Anything in this iron behemoth’s path should stand clear because it doesn’t mean to slow until it’s near.
Take a long rail trip
There’s nothing like the rhythm
of a train journey
slow to start then pick up speed
much like life’s tempo on tracks

Thank you for stopping by! I hope you enjoyed the post. If you’d like to participate in Colleen’s 2020 Weekly Poetry Challenge click here. It’s a lot of fun.
This is a wonderful take on a great photo prompt, Vashti. Train tracks are such a great way to ignite our muses. 😊
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Thank you, Suzanne! And you’re right about that. I hope you’re having a fabulous week. ❤
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Ditto, my friend. ❤
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It’s so true about life, Vashti. We started slowly and picked up faster and faster, then slow down eventually. Great poem. I enjoyed it. I’m at the airport going to see my granddaughters. Have a wonderful weekend. 💖
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Have a great time, Miriam! ❤
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Thank you, Miriam. That makes a lot of sense, especially about slowing down again. Have a fabulous time with you daughter and granddaughters. Be safe! ❤
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Thank you, Vashti! I have a wonderful time with them. I did different projects with Autumn every day. One more whole day, then I’ll be heading home on Wednesday. Time goes by so fast. But my husband and I will be coming back next month for Autumn’s birthday. ❤
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I’m happy you’re having a fabulous time with them. Have a safe trip home. ❤
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Thank you, Vashti! I’m home. It was easy and I can do it again. 💖
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Beautiful poem, Vashti. I’ve only traveled once by train. It wasn’t a great experience, but I’d like to give it another try one day. Enjoy the weekend!
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Hi, Jill! I’m glad you liked the poem. Thank you. I never enjoyed the commuting trains in NYC. I had to take 3 trains to school (high school), and I had some bad experiences. It was especially hard in the winter when it was freezing and it got darker much earlier. I do love the trains that take you to different cities and states. There’s a big difference. I also loved the bullet trains in Japan. Have a delightful new week! 😀 xo
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I think train track photos, the way they go off into the distance, are mesmerizing. Good response to the photo prompt!
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Hi, Priscilla! The photo definitely caught my eye and triggered my imagination. I’m happy you enjoyed the poem. Have a great week! 😀 xo
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Reblogged this on Stephen Geez Blog and commented:
Discover extraordinary writer Vashti Q!
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You’re awesome, Stephen! Thanks for the reblog. 😀 xo
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Reblogged, VQ-V! I used to ride trains as a kid. I especially liked long tunnels, complex switchbacks, and stopping to add or drop off cars, plus filling or emptying them. Then I would do a whole new arrangement next time I set them up… Thanks, Vashti!
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The trains you rode as a kid were probably much more fun than the NY subway system. I’m sure as a kid it was all a great adventure for you. Thanks for reblogging, Stephen! ❤
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I’ve ridden both old trains and new trains, and there’s something beautiful about each. I loved this poem, Vashti. 🙂
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Yay! I’m happy you enjoyed the poem. Thank you so much, Yvette! I think there’s something special about those old locomotives. 😀 xo
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Beautiful poem and a great take on the prompt. Love it, Vashti 😊
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Hi, Harmony! That’s so cool! Thank you very much. 😀 xo
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I love train trips and one I hope I will have is across the Rockies one day…captures the journey we are on perfectly..xx
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That reads like an amazing train trip, Sally! You’re absolutely right. ❤
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♥
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Love the sounds of trains even though I have never taken a ride! Thanks for baiting that hook, here.
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Oh! It must be time for an adventure, my friend! A train trip would be fabulous. Maybe after this pandemic business is over? 😀 xo
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I love train rides, although it’s been a longggggg time. 🙂 Loved the stop and go in your poem Vashti ❤
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I’m glad you enjoyed the rhythm of the Tanka, Debby. Thank you! It’s been a while since I’ve gone on a train trip. Well, actually I did ride the bullet trains several times to get from one city to another in Japan. That was in 2018, and it was a lot of fun. ❤ xo
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Distant memories. 🙂 ❤
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I love this poem and everything it implies! Great use of the prompt, Vashti!
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Hi, Jan! Thank you very much. I’m ecstatic that you loved the post. Have a delightful new week! ❤
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This is brilliant tanka prose, Sis. Your prose paragraphs complement the tanka perfectly. Well done. ❤
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Yay! Thank you, Sis! This is an inspiring photo. Have a lovely week! ❤ xo
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Have a great week. Huge hugs! ❤
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When I was a child, my sister and I often took the train to visit our grandparents. There is nothing like the rhythm of a train ride. Well done, Vashti.
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Thanks for sharing that, Karen. That must have been a fun trip for you and your sister. You’re right! Thank you. Have a wonderful new week! ❤
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I love your tanka prose, Vashti. Beautiful! I awaken in the middle of the night to a far-off train. I hear it on the tracks and find it somehow comforting. ♥
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That’s great, Gwen. Thank you! Maybe that means there’s a long train ride in the near future for you. 😀 A little fun and adventure would do us all good after all we’ve lived through this year. Phew! ❤
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So, so true. ♥
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Another gem, Vashti! Thanks for sharing this with us. Cheers to a fabulous week ahead. Stay safe. xo
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That’s terrific, Natalie! Thank you. You have a fantastic week too, my friend! ❤ xo
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Vashti, I love this! 😀 A great response to a most evocative photo! From the slow start of a train, you’ve captured our whole lives, beautifully encompassing thoughts and themes.
As a student at uni, I often took a 10-hour train journey (each way!) home for visits – it was exciting, exhausting, exhilarating and slightly scary but I never failed to be awed with the vast array of people I encountered, seeing snippets of their lives!
Hope you’re keeping safe and well! xx
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I’m so happy you loved the post, Annika! Thank you. Also, thanks for sharing. I was excited just reading about your journey. That must have been fun. I’m taking every precaution to stay safe. Thanks again, my friend. Have a lovely new week and stay safe as well. ❤
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I haven’t ridden on a train since childhood, but the feelings you describe in your poem are so familiar even now. I can feel the excitement. Beautiful take on the prompt, Vashti.
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Thank you, Diana. I’m happy I brought back good memories for you. ❤
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Soothing. I’ve been on a train just the once😭
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Hi, Jude! There’s still time for another train trip if you like. Thank you! 😀 xo
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I do like. It’s my pleasure 🌼
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… only if we could ride back on time!
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Hmm. That would be nice, wouldn’t it? 😀 xo
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Beautiful poem ❤️
Take care
Regards,
Rupa.
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Thank you, Rupa. I’m glad you enjoyed the poem. Thanks for the visit and comment too. Have a great weekend! 😀
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i like the way the photo reminds you of infinity! it’s really a coming and going without no ending at least on our imagination.
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You’re absolutely right, Elizabeth! Great observation. 😀
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Love the pic
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It is a great picture. It takes me away. 😀 Thank you for stopping by.
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I like the picture prompt. Sometimes images can evoke words, but often for me, they evoke music. I was walking along a set of tracks earlier this year, and I kept hearing a repetitive set of notes (and no, it wasn’t a train…). When I got back home, I picked up my guitar and began to compose. If you would like to hear the result (I hope it is OK to put a link here):
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