avatarBarbara Tifft

Summary

A young woman tragically loses her life while attempting to evade border patrol near train tracks, an event that disrupts a train journey and leads to a somber scene in the desert.

Abstract

In a poignant narrative, a group of individuals attempting to cross a border illegally encounters border patrol agents, triggering a life-threatening chase. One woman, frozen momentarily by fear, is fatally struck by an oncoming train, her life cut short at just twenty years of age. The incident unfolds in the desert, where the stark contrast between the peaceful sunset and the sudden tragedy is palpable. The aftermath is marked by silence, followed by the intrusion of emergency lights and sirens. The scene is later cleaned up, the train continues its journey, and the passengers, though shaken, resume their travels, seemingly unaware of the young woman's sacrifice.

Opinions

  • The narrative implies a critical view of the harsh realities faced by those attempting to cross borders illegally, highlighting the perilous nature of their journey.
  • The description of the woman's reaction to the border patrol suggests a sympathetic portrayal, emphasizing her youth and the instinctual responses of fight, flight, or

A Trespasser Makes Contact with the Equipment

The lights of border patrol truck flashed upon them. Her initial flight fight or freeze response was to freeze for a moment cementing her doom. The others had already started running for the tracks by the time her flight response kicked in.

Their legs longer, more nimble got them beyond the front of the oncoming train filled with unaware passengers. The sunset unlimited braked hard, then stopped. Silence in the middle if the desert , as her spirit, on the earth for just twenty years, passed. Silence in the desert until the sirens began. Darkness in the desert until the glare of red, blue and yellow lights invaded.

After the wash down ,after the arrival replacement for the shaken conductor, after the passengers were given small bottles of water and crackers, after the ancestors had come to claim her the massive train moves again arriving in time fir sunrise over Tucson.

Poetry On Medium
Poetry
Immigration
Death
Traveling
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