John didn’t have many photos taken at the train club, especially ones with people in them. Most are like those below, pictures showing progress on track work. He loved working with the tracks, both laying out new ones and repairing old ones. If he were looking at these shots right now, he could tell you exactly where they were taken on that five-mile layout.
John was very reluctant to take pictures with his cell phone. He used to laugh and tell people he had a smart phone with a dumb user. He mastered the art of making a call, but often struggled to answer one. His fingers did not swipe well. When he began to bring home photos of track, I begged him to include some with people. I felt like I knew his friends because he talked about them, but I had no idea what they looked like. He tried, he really did. It never became easy for him.
Recently I picked up his phone, because grandson David and I now use it to play games when our phones are charging. Wondering when he last took a picture, I clicked on Photos. These are the only two he took that day. This one shows a friend behind the engine, sitting on a very comfortable seat.
The other shot includes the friend and David wearing a red shirt.
These two photos were taken the day John died. It does my heart good to know that he was thinking of people that day and perhaps was going to share the pictures with me.
Mehrling Muse 
I love this!
— Pete (aka Zenlutheran)
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I was pleased to find those photos almost four months after they were taken.
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what a beautiful sentiment Anne! You must have been very happy to find them.
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Yes, I was happy to find John’s last photos. I doubt he took a hundred over a period of four years.
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more a tinker, then a clicker I guess.
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To make a bad pun, I’d say CLINKER. (Steam engine owners are always talking about clinkers — the stony residue from burned coal. They have to be cleaned out of the firebox regularly.)
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Wonderful sharing you John railway track memories. Beautiful photo.
You have been glad to find them.
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I was very glad to find John’s photos.
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Thank you so much!
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This story and the photos really touched a cord, Anne; thank you for sharing them.
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If I had touched a chord, you’d be singing now.
I was pleased to find the pictures.
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I’m so sorry Anne, I hd no idea that John had passed away. Th family must have been must be, devastated. Please accept my condolences. John always seemed such a nice man, such a family minded man especially when you were out and about with the boys or having a visit from the neighbour’s boy. You seem to be bearing up well under the circumstances. Huge Hugs
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Thank you, David. I’m doing very well. God took John at the perfect time. He had just spent a weekend at the train club and was hurrying home to make a presentation at church the next day. He was at the top of his game, doing everything he wanted to do. The problem with his heart was going to get him in a short while. He skipped the downward slide. He is now in heaven, his destination from the beginning. I’m sure he is surrounded by heavenly hugs constantly.
Pre-heavenly hugs to you!
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You are a lady of huge faith Anne. I’m sure on this occasion it isn’t misplaced. John will be where you say and probably enjoying himself though missing you of course. You’ll both have oodles to tell each other when you finally meet again. Take great care of yourself Huge Hugs David
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I feel sure John has already talked to Martin Luther and J. S. Bach.
Heavenly hugs!
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But they are nice shots Anne.
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In all the times you and John mentioned the train club in conversations, it somehow escaped me that the club was “hands-on” in laying-out track. I’d only imagined a group of men who had an interest in trains just talking about it all. I should have known that wasn’t John’s style. Thank you for posting the pictures; they help round-out one dimension of a man I admired.
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They did plenty of talking after dark! David loved the weekend when they ran trains 🚂 into the wee hours.
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That is a big hobby train with a 5 mile track! I’m glad you found these photos, like a hug from above. Did John ever have a model train scape at home, or did he stick with the big one outdoors?
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At various times we had everything from LGB down to N scale in the house — all except Z gauge, the very tiny one. The larger one ran outdoors. It’s slightly bigger than Lionel. Because the riding trains were so heavy, they joked that it was hernia gauge.
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Nice find!
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💗
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Memories….they keep us going.
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And memories don’t tire us out!
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How wonderful to find these photos. I recall John had a keen interest in trains.
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I suspect the huge number of “tracks only” photos was a log of progress for work they were doing.
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John and the Train Club seem like they were a match made in heaven. The photos are lovely– and meaningful, too. Thanks for sharing them here.
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John always enjoyed his time at the train club.
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What a perfect find. That does my heart good, too.
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This is a very thoughtful story, Anne. I am so sorry John passed away. Reading the other comments, it seems like timing was everything and good to know he was probably living the life he wanted to live. It is lovely to see that John was trying hard to take photos and he did. He listened to you and loved you a lot. Hope you are doing well and take care.
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John was very involved in living. He had a cancer-like disease that was going to kill him, but I don’t think he knew it. I certainly didn’t. Still, what a way to go! I’m doing very well, having plenty of things to look forward to. Thank you for reading and commenting.
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John seemed like the kind to live to the fullest. Very admirable and also thoughtful towards others. People must have been delighted to have known him. Lovely to hear that you have things to look forward to 🙂
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People certainly admired his brain. A young man he worked with said, “If they learn to do brain transplants, I want yours.”
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Wow, John certainly impressed the younger folk. That’s how you know he was a nice guy with the smarts and looked out for others 😊
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How poignant to find the photos that John took, especially on the last day of his life. You said earlier that you were at peace knowing he had spent a blissful last few days doing what he loved. I had a smartphone briefly when I had to get a 3G phone and got a voucher from AT&T since the upgrade from 2G to 3G was mandatory. I could place a call, but not answer a call and the swiping was something I could not get the hang of so I returned to a flip phone within a few weeks of practicing with Marge being the guinea pig. When I had to get a new 4G phone this year when the other 4G phone died (after a year) I ordered the same model from Amazon and it has more bells and whistles than the other one and more than I need … that’s for sure.
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Some people have lots of trouble with swiping. John learned to use his phone, but he would have been happier with a land line. I’m always thrilled to find something new to do with my phone. I do email, texting, blogging, banking, reading headlines, and managing our photo frame with my phone. It’s the easiest way to look at my calendar, too. Playing games on it is fun. Is be lost without it.
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I am glad to know I wasn’t the only one who had issues swiping. You are like my friend Marge. She had her PC, then a laptop, then bought a tablet and used that for the longest time. After she got her phone, that was all she used. She’d be in the hospital for a week at a time sometimes when a COPD flare-up and said she didn’t need TV as her phone had everything she needed to entertain herself.
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I could be quite happy with just a phone, but it would be lots harder to write blog posts.
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I don’t know how you do as much as you do on it. I don’t know how to text and on a flip phone, it takes nimble fingers to do so. I was always amazed that AJ wrote all her posts on her phone. You can buy a small, roll-up keyboard that plugs into a tablet to type more quickly and I will bet they have that for phones as well.
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When I am chatting with David or writing something fairly long, I speak the words into the phone. Of course, some of the words don’t come out right, so it can be hilarious. I need to watch the words appear and immediately fix the mistakes.
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That’s funny – you have to put a message on the end that the message was dictated and there might be errors. I saw a message yesterday that said “dictated to Siri”. Hmm.
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My niece uses dictation all the time, since she has a problem with her wrists. She is very careful to check everything before it goes out.
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I’ve often thought of it for the computer using Dragon software, especially when I have long tomes to type from scratch and even sometimes when I have a blog post in my head. One day I will end up with a smartphone I think … I keep putting it off for now.
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Smart phones are fun.
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What a blessing to find these photos thanks for sharing them.
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I like these photos very much, they are quite emotive. Your John really had a good eye for
taking photos. Shame he didn’t like it.
miriam
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John definitely didn’t like taking pictures or posing for them. It was sweet of him to take those last ones to share with me. If he were here right now, we’d laugh about it.
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