By Tricia Thomas
Date: 12 October 1999

Destiny Derailed

The course was charted.
This train was “on track,”
each future moment 
painstakingly accounted for,
mapped out year by year
by tedious mile-markers
of college funds, 401 K’s
and annual mammograms.

I had it all worked out,
baggage loaded
and tickets torn,
settled in for the long ride.
Then you emerge 
from a side track…
like a freight train 
on a fast track,
unexpected, 
yet surprisingly welcome.

I saw the red lights flashing,
I heard the whistle blow,
But froze there on the track
hypnotized by your glaring light
racing toward me. 

Did someone program us
for “auto-pilot”
then leave the trains unmanned?
Did I ignore the warning signals?
Will destiny be derailed,
or will the switchman save us
before we’re forced to jump the train?