On the train to Sheringham

People text and drink bottled water
they rummage through their bags
rest their glasses on the table
and rub their eyes.

A boy asks his dad "what's that?"
pointing at a pylon.
A girl uses the window as a cushion
a lady mends a wheel on a pushchair.

A little girl says "clouds are like hedges
in the sky."
A nurse fingers a packet of cigarettes
the no smoking signs
shining in her eyes like neon.
The conductor explains to a man
"you will be met by police at the next station."