My grandson Wyatt loves trains. When he sees or hears a train his body quivers.
Once when he was two going on three we were in town for story hour at the library. We were an hour early, so we took a walk.
We walked up King Street, then down Washington, past the bank, and past the Town Run Tap House. We stopped at the railroad tracks to look and listen. “Grandy, I hear a train coming.” I took his hand.
We stood still, looked both ways again and again. We listened for a while and then a little more.
I don’t hear a train. There’s no train coming.
He didn’t argue. We crossed the tracks hand in hand and walked behind O’Hurley’s General Store toward Tommy’s Pizza, crossed over those tracks and strolled up Rocky Street to Cullison Park.
I sat on a bench and checked my watch. Thirty minutes to go before story time.
Wyatt dashed from swings, to monkey bars, to slide. Back and forth again and again, zigzagging like a squirrel on cat nip.
I got worn out just watching. I checked my watch.
Time to go, I called out.
“One more, one more!” he yelled and flew down the slide one more time. And then one more.
We set off for story time.
We strolled up Mill Street toward German Street. Just as we got to Tommy’s, a train rumbled over the tracks. Wyatt stood transfixed until the last car zipped by.
“I told you I heard a train!”
He took my hand and walked me to the library for story time.
Are you sure his name isn’t spelled WHY-at???
Nothing better than a 4-year-old’s critique!
When grandson Ethan was 4, I asked him where he was thinking about going to college. Costco, he said. Why there, I asked. ‘Cause they have good pizzas and cashews. Priorities.
Randy,
.
I sometimes wonder about kids [ if not adults] who have that ‘3rd eye’ sense. Something seems to be going on though it has not yet happened. We spend a lot of time in the nearby woods, and ‘see’ deer before they even are in view. Wyatt just knew before you – – maybe he can teach you!
Dave C
I loved going to O’Hurley’s on Thursday evenings to listen to the circle of musicians playing Old Time music. One of them would suggest a song and soon all of them would join in- anything from “Country Roads” to Irish ballads sung to the accompaniment of a harp.
On one particular summer evening it was very hot in the Great Hall. The door to the back was propped open with a fan and visitors were having a grand time in their Amish rocking chairs. Half way through the lively rendition of a train song the ground started to vibrate and seconds later just as the musicians played the chorus a train raced by the side of the building drowning out the music and shaking the room. The timing was so perfect everybody screamed, laughed and clapped and even the most laid back oldtimers couldn’t help smiling.