Life is like a train ride…………………………………………..by Steve Polittle
Life is like a train ride. We get on. We Ride. We get off. We get back on and ride some more. There are accidents and there are delays. At certain stops there are surprises. Some of these will translate into great moments of joy; some will result in profound sorrow......
When we are born and when we first board the train, we meet people whom we think will be with us for the entire journey. Those people are our parents.
Sadly, this is far from the truth. Our parents are with us for as long as we absolutely need them. They too, have journeys they must complete. We live on with the memories of their love, affection, friendship, guidance and their ever presence.
There are others who board the train and who eventually become very important to us as well.
These people are our brothers, sisters, friends and acquaintances, who we will learn to love and cherish...
Some people consider their journey like a jaunty tour; they will just go merrily along.
Others will encounter many upsets, tears, and losses on their journey. Others still, will linger on to offer a helping hand to anyone in need.
Some people on the train will leave an everlasting impression when they get off. (Nicholas surely did!!)
Some will get on and get off the train so quickly, they will scarily leave a sign that they ever traveled along with you- or ever crossed your path.
We will sometimes be upset that some passengers, whom we love, will choose to sit in another compartment and leave us to travel on our own. Then again, there's nothing that says we can’t seek them out anyway.
Nevertheless, once sought out and found, we may not even be able to sit next to them because that seat will be taken
That's ok, everyone's journey will be filled with hopes, dreams, challenges, setbacks and goodbye's We must strive to make the best of it.......no matter what!
We must constantly strive to understand our travel companions and look for the best in everyone.
Remember that at any moment during our journey- any one of our travel companions can have a weak moment and be in need of our help
We too, may vacillate or hesitate- even trip…. Hopefully we can count on someone being there- and to be supportive and understanding.
The bigger mystery of our journey is that we don’t know when our last stop will come. Neither do we know when our travel companions will make their last stop -not even those sitting in the seat next to us.
I know we will be sad to make our final stop. I’m sure of it. Our separation from all those friends and acquaintances we made during the train ride will be painful. Leaving all those we are close to will be a sad thing. But then again I am certain, that one day we will get to the main station only to meet up with everyone else. We will all be carrying our baggage. Most of which we didn’t have when we first got on the train.
As Ashley said last year in her beautifully written poem:
This she knows for sure:
We wouldn’t be together this day,
We wouldn’t be so strong
We wouldn’t be so close.
And we wouldn’t have come this far……….
We are all on this train ride together. Above all we should strive to make the ride as pleasant and memorable as we can, right up until we each make the final stop and leave the train for the last time.
Thank you all for taking this train ride with Nicholas and our family.
Thank you for supporting each other and honoring Nicholas on this day.
If you are planning a memorial service and would like our assistance call us at 609-758-5741 and as always check out our site at www.dovesforrelease.com
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