Gone are the days
when train whistles
blew my blues away.
What once took
an afternoon now
takes under an hour:
steam has progressed
to diesel and electric.
Thanks to local fanatics,
a little steam train
still trundles past on time,
blowing a fainter whistle
farther down the line.
Kim M. Russell, 13th January 2026
It’s Tuesday and time for Poetics at the dVerse Poets Pub, this week with Melissa, who reminds us that, on this day in 1968, Johnny Cash performed and recorded an album at Folsom State Prison in Folsom, California.
Melissa gives us some background to Johnny Cash, his first live album and the song ‘Folsom at Folsom Blues’, as well as the lyrics and a video clip, to inspire us to write a poem about whatever it evokes. We may write in any form but should keep our poems to twenty lines or less.
I took my title from the final verse of the song: “Well, if they freed me from this prison, if that railroad train was mine / I bet I’d move it on a little farther down the line.”
writing in north norfolk 
Oh, I love how you took inspiration from the train… maybe better take that view instead of that of a prisoner really
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Thanks Björn. The train was the one thing that stood out for me.
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Cute poem and even cuter picture of your grandson on the train ❤
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Thanks so much, Lisa.
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You’re welcome, Kim.
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I get a real sense of nostalgia from your poem, Kim. Your grandson is adorable!
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Thank you so much, Melissa. I was very fortunate to have travelled on old steam trains when I was little, and my father worked on them for a while too. The Poppy Line train can be heard quite clearly in the summer, but sadly not in our village.
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If you’ve ever lived close enough to the tracks…you never forget. Fine work, Kim.
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