Thankful Friday!

Trains... trains, trains, trains, trains.....

Did you know that there are steam trains, electric trains, and diesel trains (which are technically "diesel and electric" trains) and they all have different whistle sounds? And there are 4 major freight train lines in the U.S.: CSX, Burlington Northern (Santa Fe), Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern, also one national passenger train line called Amtrak. When a train is long and there are engines at the end, those engines are called "kickers" and they help add power for heavy trains up steep hills. In addition, there are so many different kinds of freight cars- passenger, hopper, coal, vehicle, tanker, log haulers- shall I keep going? Because I can...

Tuesday, I had the pleasure of taking my son to the Waterfront in Pittsburgh following a doctor's appointment and we watched trains. We saw 7, which was a record for us. We put a dime, a nickel and a quarter on the track and gleefully picked them back up post-squashing. Every time a train came, it was like the first time my son had ever seen one. The joy and delight that came over his face as the headlight approached, the gates dropped and the whistle blew (ears covered, of course!) made it feel like Christmas morning!

Before we had him, I knew nothing about trains. Steam whistles sound different than diesel whistles? Who knew? And certainly, trains at the Waterfront were a nuisance. Likely when I was there, I'd shopped for hours, had a yummy meal which was anesthetizing and wanted to get home when invariably, a train came and delayed my exit. My thought used to be: "Man, I just missed my chance to get out!" Definitely not: "Wow, a CSX!!"

What happened? Someone I love so much loving something so much happened. My son lives, breathes and eats trains, and I love them with him. I think I am almost as thrilled when one comes as he! His first precious prayers that he has spoken to the Lord have included thanking him for trains. And so, Lord, I thank you for trains, too.

I am so grateful that I can enjoy something with him that he loves. What a great time we had on Tuesday! I am so blessed to be able to enjoy this sweet, innocent time in his life, and the changes he has brought. And when this obsession with trains has passed him by like an 87 car-long Norfolk Southern with 5 engines, and 2 kickers, I know I'll always acknowledge train's presence much more happily than I did way back when.