and this is why I love taking the train
for moments like this
waking up to a darkened land
I don't even know what state I am in
falling asleep to Texas scrub bush
waking to my dear plant friend
chapparal (larrea tridentata)
that which I've been writing about
dreaming about
carrying with me
ever since I left the USA
and returned
chapparal, yucca, and prickly pear
the land has flattened
and the scrub bush rolls all the way to the horizon
where mesas touch the sky
as we roll on through the day
clouds gathering at the cliffs
strong sun warming my snow-frozen bones
the mesas grow
we plow through some mountains
in our metal bullet train
my eyes close
to enjoy the sun through my eyelids
scrub bush begins to include more sage brush
and now it changes into junipers scattered through the landscape
larger yuccas raising their arms to greet the sky
tall dried out flower pods nodding to the wind
in the wake of
passing train
I sit cross-legged next to a large window
sunshine beaming on my body
listening to the resplendent hum of the train
and the music of the sounds around me:
people's voices
"it's beautiful,
it's beautiful..."
a woman behind me is talking about colleges
I see the mountains looming larger
this landscape of my dreams
the love affair hidden in my heart since I first arrived
and left
and arrived again
a come-and-go sort of love
that is perhaps not physically present
but is always felt in the heart
I feel this with you, oh Desert
and, Taiwan
and, New England...
and, with so many places!
this is my plight as a traveler
my gift as a traveler
to be always in love
with the entire world
yet also always feeling
a certain reminiscence
for that which is not here
well, I am here now
landscape rolling by,
train sounds, sunlight,
warmth of body and mind,
heart singing,
soul soaring
headed from East to West,
around and around
there is a Path
I can't quite see it
but I know it's there
dipping and diving
under the trees and bushes
of my imagination
yet also in front of me
as I run through the forest
of my mind
remembering small foot paths
of deer
large American deer
small Taiwanese deer
and coyote
sunset sky
rainbows stretching across the
darkening landscape
we've been rolling all day
the morning passed by quickly,
dreaming about herbal concoctions
doodling into my notebook while listening to
blaring electronica on headphones
afternoon passed by quickly
talking to another artist
composing a book, just starting on his cross-country trans-global travels
inspired
infused by desert essence
magic
now, evening
monoliths unseen outside of the window
i will wake to california
my home state
even before the sun rises
i will land in time to
hear the morning birdsong
roll across the land
and greet my parents
with a smile
brighter
than even the sun
and climb my mountains of youth
to greet the rising sun
or at least setting--- we'll see how the day goes---
with arms upraised and chest wide open
but for tonight
landscape rolls by
we are almost into arizona
almost all the way across the country
3.5 day journey
fellow trainmates become familiar faces
each heading to their own homes
for the holydays
blessings
abunDance
--
