The Railroad Connects Us All

I am a firm believer in rail heritage.  As I see a modern train, I see it moving on a right of way cleared many generations ago by a country with big ambitions.  A country  growing.  Growing greater.  Growing with the railroad.
On today's railroad, I see this same America.  An America linked by steel rails.  Rails that carry the commodities that we depend on, the goods that we need.  I see cities, towns and whistleposts where the trains roll by.  Where the coal trains roll and the grain heads onward.  Where manufactured goods make there way to market.
As a grandparent and grandchild give the same salute to the engineer, I see a railroad that moves the way it always has and always will.  The railroad has changed in many ways.  It has become safer, more efficient.  Yet it is the same steel highway that connects us all.  Connects America.