My bottom lip trembled with fear as I listened closely. The burning coal crackled and hissed and I was certain this is what the hell fires sound like when they burn.
Kneeling down Dad said, “It’s okay, pretty soon it will move and you will hear ‘chug a chug a choo choo’ just like in ‘The Little Engine that Could’.”
I wasn’t so sure about this old coal burning steam engine, after all, this was the stuff of old western movies. You know, the one’s where the cowboys stop the train and take all of your property. This would be like pirates of the Amish Land. Yet, Dad insisted that we ride the Stroudsburg Rail Road through Amish Country and enjoy the trip.
Dad was wrong, it didn’t go “chug a chug a choo choo” it was more like, “clickity clack shh, clickity clack, shh.” The wheels felt like they were off to a slow start and my trembling lip began to smile as the pace was nice and slow. Oh yeah, I thought, this is going to be so much fun! Within minutes our pace quickened and I began to hold my Dad for fear I would fall out of the trains open window and all the way to the ground.
Clickety, clack, shh the train sounded all the way to Paradise, Pennsylvania where passengers could disembark from the train to enjoy a picnic lunch. I didn’t know much about Paradise, but it sounded pretty cool and I wanted to get off the train and see what all the fuss was about.
Dad stopped me quick, “Laura, we didn’t bring our lunch. We have to go back to the train station to eat lunch.”
“But, can’t we walk back?” I asked with obvious disappointment because I could hear the hell fire’s hissing in the engine as it passed our car to switch for the trip back.
“No,” Dad laughed, “it’s too far, we have to ride the train back and then we will eat lunch. Besides, I want to show you something.”
I secretly hoped his idea of a good time wouldn’t get much worse than the hissing coal engine, but this was Dad and Dad is full of adventure. So, I sat tight and enjoyed the trip back to the station with anticipation of our next adventure.
When the train returned to the station Dad hurried me out of the car and to the motorhome so that we could eat lunch; except instead of fixing us our lunch he jumped behind the steering wheel and hurried me to my seat so that we could, “Just drive down the road a piece before we eat.”
It didn’t take long, just a short trip and we were at a restaurant made out of old rail road cars, I was so excited to eat inside one of these cars, but my excitement was short lived. Instead Dad directed me down to the railroad tracks where the train we were just on would be passing for its last trip of the day. Now I was really scared, what if the train came along and we would be … SPLAT! Yet, Dad called me to him as he reached his right hand into his pocket he pulled out several pennies and gave them to me.
“Oh, thanks Dad, now can we go eat lunch,” I eagerly asked even if I was a bit confused. Why didn’t he give me the pennies up on the hill, why bring me all the way down to the tracks?
“Wait, Laura, put your pennies on the rail, like this,” he laid a couple right smack dab in the middle of the rail where the train would soon run them over.
Again, I was hesitant and Dad noticed. “It’s okay; if you do this you will get a souvenir!”
Looking over my shoulder at the gift shop on the hill, boy oh boy, I want one of those souvenirs, and so I did as Dad suggested, I laid my pennies out all in a row on the rail. Then Dad and I sat on the hill waiting for the train to make the last trip of the day.
First I heard the clackety clack shh coming down the track, then the ground seemed to rumble under my butt and as the train got closer I heard the hiss of the engine eating the coal to make the steam to run the train. Dad and I sat and waved to all the people that were making the trip we had made just minutes before and those people even waved back at us!
When the train passed Dad said, “Okay, go get your pennies.” Again, I hesitated, so Dad took my hand and together we ran down the hill. My pennies weren’t on the rail anymore; I felt a sob coming on. Did I make a mistake with the pennies? I need to find them so Dad will take me to the gift shop! Dad didn’t seem too upset that I had lost my pennies, but there wasn’t much that did upset Dad. Still holding my hand he bent over and reached for a shiny brown object amid the stones between the rails, “Ah ha,” he said, “here is one, let’s find the other two.”
I took the piece from his hand and it was warm to the touch, it was no longer a circle, I wouldn’t know until several years later that the round penny was now an oval shape. The president’s head stretched as if he had been formed from some sort of silly putty, rather than copper.
After some searching Dad and I found the other pennies and he led me back to the camper. “What about my souvenir?”
“Laura, the pennies are your souvenir, they show that you were brave enough to go on the train and later to the tracks. That is better than any toy I could buy in the gift shop.”
I thought about what he said and it must have been pretty important, because I still have one of those pennies!
No comments:
Post a Comment