The Zen of Classic Toy Trains

[rha90272]

Most of the posts on this forum are of the "can you help me" or "look at my layout" variety, which are extremely useful. I've posted several of the former, and soon hope to post one of the latter. (I'm in the early stages of a 10' x 12' L-shaped O-31 Lionel two-level layout, to exercise the postwar trains of my youth -- both the ones I had then, and those I coveted and can now purchase.)

But in starting this layout, I'm taken with something I rarely see discussed: building a layout of toy trains changes my perceptions of the world, and in very positive ways.

On a recent car trip from L.A. to Boulder CO, the desert beauty was there as before, but I noticed individual rock formations, and how shadows played on them. I noticed the design of cuts in hills to allow roads and rail lines through. Not only cuts, but how retaining walls and culverts were used. I noticed colors in more detail. How roads intersected rails, with the roadway at the same height as the rails, with depressions allowing only for flanges of rail wheels on the insides of the rails. The whole world was more alive with detail, color, texture. It was all more integrated, interrelated -- dare I say it had a "oneness" that felt integral and right.

When my grandkids play with my trains, it helps me enter their worlds (literally, on my hands & knees, on the floor, for one thing), and them to enter mine. We become closer in interests, in dialog, more as one than two separated generations.

My setup talks to me, so I become "in touch" even with inanimate things. It tells me where mountains, cuts, bridges, retaining walls should go. I look at it and listen to it, and am guided by what it tells me regarding next steps in its creation. There are times when I spend an hour just looking, listening, for clues about what "feels right". Time flies by, or stops -- it's unimportant. Being in the "now" at such times is all I want.

Layouts and toy trains make us more alive to life and the world in all their details and relationships. I'm wondering if others have similar feelings and sensations. I suspect so. I'd be interested in your thoughts.
Bob Anderson

[Jumijo]

I also have found myself noticing things, particularly in nature, that I never noticed before since I started my layout. I look at rock formations, trees, and rivers with a more discerning eye now. I notice the subtle color differences of rocks, trees and grasses. Even man-made objects like concrete or storne walls, and pavement have entered into my realm of consciousness, where as before, they were just there. I looked but never saw, Grasshopper.

Jim

[FJ and G]

Bob,

Excellent post. I've got to catch my real VRE train but I'll mull this over.

[perry1060]

Bob,

I spent many hours waiting for my layout to 'speak' to me in the same fashion that you describe. I spent as much time studying my layout as I did building it. It's quite an amazing relationship that develops between the builder and the layout, so to speak. You learn to build your layout via incremental revelations. I also noticed that by studying the preliminary photographs of progress, it becomes easier to find the flaws and to make corrections.

 

[FJ and G]

ok, Bob, I'm back.

Each of the many layouts I've built has inspired the Zen in me (there's a book called Zen of Motorcycle Repair so why not toy trains?). Oftentimes, I sit there with a glass of wine and feel that I'm in my own little created world. This sounds kind of corny but sometimes I fantasize that heaven for me when I expire, will be my own planet with an unlimited number of trains and track waiting for me to build railroads for eternity and enjoy riding them. We can dream.

[Anonymous]

Yes Bob building a trains layout sure does open your eyes to the details that occur in nature. I find my self looking at plants more closely and studying there textures, shapes and colors. I'm glad you brought this subject up I had thought about starting a thread like this but  was afraid I would be the only one to be this way. I have also realized that you really don't need to buy all your sceanery details at the train shop there is alot of them just laying around outside.

[Joe Hohmann]

Since one of my other hobbies is entering photographic competitions, I've understood the value of REALLY looking at things that most people don't seem to notice. This has helped me in the layout building process. Joe

[cnw1995]

Very thoughtful posts. I know that book Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance and then there's always my fave: The Tao of Pooh (Winnie that is).

I like the concept of creating (and controlling) my own little comforting world - there's all sorts of psych things in there to root around in    Funny, I've had that same sort of dream, David. Similarly, on my recent trip to the wilds of Northern Michigan, I found myself taking a longer look at the array of greens in a birch-and-pine woods, the way foilage layers itself, the dark-light swirl of some of the deeper rivers, with an eye towards reproducing some of the effects on the layout.

[thor]

At some point early on in my life, trains became model trains.  For quite a while they were very real and when I played with them I felt as if they were full sized but at some age maybe ten, eleven, I suddenly realised I could no longer 'be there' as if they were real. This discovery happened not long after I switched from 0 to H0 but it didnt matter then because the HO ones were so much better looking and had more features than my old clockwork stuff.  I guess I was growing up, my perception of the world was getting much wider and yet sometimes I got out my old 0 gauge and wondered where it all had gone wrong. Why couldn't I see them as I used to?

Last Christmas my son bought me my first Lionel set and my surrogate daughter - actually niece but she might as well be as I'm bringing her up - absolutely went gaga over them "they're so big!" and insisted I set them up on the floor. I was going to stash them somewhere for the future (like you have so much of THAT at my age!) but okay I'll just do it once, what the heck and suddenly I was THERE just like in the old days.  I must have watched that 4-4-2 go round and round for hours and I could see the massive connecting rod ponderously moving up and down, hear the hissing of the pistons and I nearly wore out the whistling tender!  Never had one of those before, they're brilliant!

I always have been fascinated by all sorts of details, so I know what you all mean and I agree but the real 'Zen' if one thinks of it as a state of mind, was the magical way I was transported back in time to an era I had forgotten and the funny thing is it had quite an effect on me in other ways, my wife noticed but wisely didnt say anything sarcastic and actually said it was a quality she'd fallen in love with when we first met. What Spankybirds sig line says.

 

[Greg T.]

Great Thread!  I agree that model railroading has heighted my awareness of nature.  Most definately.  I appreciate nature more.  I appreciate more, the effort it took the railroads to over-come nature.  I simply notice more of my natural surroundings, and I believe it's due (in part) to my love of toy trains.

Greg

[twaldie]

Some really good reading in this post.

Thor - isn't coming full circle fun?

It's fun to rediscover something left behind so long ago.  Unfortunately, it seems that as we are returning, our kids are moving away from it....  I guess I will just wait for them to "come back", by then I'll be at the point where I can give it all to them and their kids.  Now that will be fun!

Tim