Thoughts of You –– written by Sydney Walrath (Grade 10)

It didn’t pull up it was just suddenly there

Hesitant and scared I held back but was pulled along by you hand aboard a magnificent steam train

And suddenly we were moving

The train’s whistle rang out three times but eerily echoed back making it six

Shyly peering through foggy windows I saw nothing but empty space

I stood on my toes and looked further down

The absence of tracks disturbed me but the glistening road of stars was enchanting

Eventually bored of the view we ventured multiple cars

One after the other and the next and the next

One car had a movie playing inside

Projected onto an old sheet telling the tale through love songs

We stopped and sat together and cried when it ended

Bitter tears were wiped away and we continued moving forward

More and more cars

Just empty space

But we wanted to get to the end

So we ran

Down the corridors

Our fingertips brushed against the walls

We passed through people like ghosts

Through we didn’t seem to get anywhere at all

More cars

More empty space Where exactly was the end?

We ran till our legs gave into exhaustion and we collapsed

And when we awoke, we started again and again and again and again and again and again

Collapse

Pass out

Wake up

And again and again and again

It stopped being some childish game but a search

Although neither of us knew what we were searching for

But because it burned so deep into our minds we had no choice but to keep going

It lasted so long I had forgotten who I was

What’s my name?

What do I look like?

Had my hair always been this white?

Had I always been this thin?

Had my skin always been so paper like?

But you didn’t know

You didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you didn’t know you