The "Choo Choo" Story

It was an ordinary day. My grandson Caden and I are headed to the train station to see the trains. I never get tired of going to see the trains. I used to live a block from the station when I was a child. I spent many days at the station watching the trains and playing with my friends at the station. Guess I'm still a child. Caden enjoys them as much as I do. It's a cold morning and we find a parking spot close to the entrance. As we are getting out of the car I see that a commuter train is at platform No. 1. "Come on, Caden," I yell to him. We can see it before it leaves. We run directly over to what used to be the Railway Express dock to see the passengers unloading. "Let's go!" I said. "We can make it to the platform before they leave." Over to the entrance we both run. He is only 4 years old, but can motor. Open the big entrance door, up the marble stairs with the brass handles, through the lobby (everyone watching as we run as fast as we can), down the stairs to the platform. The conductor waves to us as he is signaling to the engineer that everyone is aboard. He steps in the train and closes the door. Then the train slowly starts. Doesn't make as much noise as it used to. It's electric! We run along side of it for about 25 feet and give up. Too tired! At least I am. I have brought Caden here before, but he still enjoys me telling him about the yellow warning lines along the edge of the platform and about the concrete railroad ties that used to be wood. We talk about where the train was going and when the next one will come. "Let's go see if we can find a schedule so we know when the next one will arrive." I tell him. As we are heading to the steps to go back up to the lobby, we see someone dressed in an Amtrak uniform. I ask him if he knows when the next train will arrive. "Yes, in about a half an hour, but on the Westbound platform. Heading to Harrisburg. You want me to snap a photo of the two of you with your camera?" "You betcha. Thanks," I answer. OK, now what do we do for half an hour? How about going up and down the elevator a couple of times and sliding down the big brass railings like I did hundreds of times. On our way to the steps and the railings we see a small cafe which is in the lobby. "How about a donut and milk?" I ask Caden. "Sure Tampah," he responds. Out of donuts today. OK, we'll have some cookies. We each select a pack of soft chocolate chip cookies and we get a pint of chocolate milk to share. We sit in the lobby and watch the passengers coming and going while we share the milk and eat our cookies. "Just about time for the train to come," I tell him. "Let's go, Tampah!!" he yelled. This time to a different platform. We ride the elevator down and get off on the platform. In a few minutes we can see the headlight of the train. As it slows coming into the station, Caden is excited. So am I! We head to the engine and the engineer opens his window. He shows Caden what buttons and switches he uses and then shows us the most important thing in the engine. He holds up his coffee cup! We look back at the train and see the conductors signaling to the engineer. Then we hear the familiar, "All Aboard!" Off it goes. Left on the platform are Caden and I and a fellow carrying a collapsible bicycle. Now that's another story! It was an extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.