Our Train Still Runs

“This train still runs, though the baggage weighs a ton
We carry on, No one is forever young, I’m not done,
This train still runs”.
Janis Ian, This Train still Runs©1992

I was flipping the channels the other night and ran into a beautiful white haired woman singing folk music and was surprised to find it was none other than Janis Ian. Her hit, “At Seventeen” was one of my favorites in my college days. But this was not the timid nervous teen singer with afro hair, but a confident white haired woman with a beautifully mature voice and a face glowing with wisdom. Some complain that singers’ voices aren’t as good when they age, but I found hers so much more mellow and developed than her younger years.

I found her Autobiography at the library which told about the years of struggles that brought her to such inner beauty. I bought her Essential Hits and loved the poetry in her music with some of her songs reminding me of Joni Mitchell of whom I have been a die hard fan.

Then I heard her song, “This Train Still Runs” written in her midlife and it reminded me of the midlife women celebrated in WomanSage. WomenSage is an organization started by Register columnist Jane Glenn Haas which is a non-profit, membership organization dedicated to educating, empowering and fostering mentoring relationships among women at midlife.

In the past women were forced off the “train of life”, retired into the role of Grandmother. Thanks to groups like WomanSage, another car has been added to this train of life where women come together to continue the ride together, discovering new destinations and helping one another and the world with the grace and the wisdom born of maturity. This is something that Janis Ian, who hasn’t had a hit since 1975, is doing.

We admit with Janis that no one is forever young and though we may carry baggage from our life experiences, we have survived the bad and celebrate the good. We still carry on refusing to jump off the train since we are not done. We have plenty to contribute still and we will, since our train still runs.

Buist©2-7-09