The Train In The Sky

A sensory escape for tired minds.

A gentle hum of an engine wakes you from a deep, calming slumber.

Your eyes are still closed, and your head is resting gently in the cradle of your arms. Before lifting your head, you take a deep breath of the warm, cosy smell of your jumper. The comfort of a deep sleep flows through your body; it feels floaty and quiet, and your mind feels peacefully empty.

Resting your chin on your arms, you notice the amazing interior of your surroundings. Through blurred eyes, you can make out that it’s an old steam train with a rich, dark red wood interior, not like anything you’d ever seen before. The seats are plump and clean and made from a deep cherry-red stained suede. The doors and ceiling are decorated with trails of gold, and right in the centre, hangs a beautiful candlelit chandelier.

It was relatively quiet on the train, but now and then there would be a quiet jingling sound from the teacup in front of you, which was rattling gently against the saucer. The mint-scented steam rising from the cup shows it’s been freshly placed — just for you to wake up to.

As you sit up properly now, you lean back into the comfort of the chair and curiously admire the matching wooden armrests.

Drawing your attention back to the table, you wrap your hands around the white teacup, stopping the noise, and you take in its warmth and pleasant aroma. Taking a sip of the warm tea, you look around the train once again, now noticing the windows, beautifully framed with thick red curtains. And the view outside was a cloudy grey, which made the warm lights inside the train glow even brighter.

There were distant mountains and trees, hills and rivers. Some tiny little buildings and houses that seemed so much further away than usual. That detail draws you closer to the window, now pressing your forehead against the cold glass and peering down.

You notice clouds passing by, right below the window, big, white, fluffy mists that peacefully cover the scenery for a couple of seconds before they drift on their journey.

The view disappears again for a moment, covered by a blanket of white, and you pull the curtains gently shut to enjoy the sparkling lights of the train.

A place where the tea is always warm, a carriage is always empty, and a seat is always waiting for you, until you’re ready to go home.

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