The Red Caboose
by Valorie Broadhurst Woerdehoff and Connie R Meester
only a distant train whistle
anniversary
of his death Valorie
waiting for the red caboose
to bring him home Connie
another town
same train groans
through my life Valorie
ambulance stalled
behind RR crossing bar
wrong side of the tracks Connie
playing on the rails
slippery under my sandal Valorie
Gramma’s kitchen
open each fall
feeding the hobos Connie
From Tsugigami: Gathering the Pieces, by Valorie Broadhurst Woerdehoff and Connie R Meester, Winchester, Virginia: Red Moon Press, 2018, page 21.