Carousel

young fear begets indulgent avoidance 
we ride in circles on this carousel 
up & down
mirroring painted smiles
to mask our frown 
but there's no substance here 
empty melodies
ringing ears
yearning for the next round to be different 
getting burned over and 
over refusing to let the fire teach us 
what to fear and how to love
the blue heron flies above
whispering in that hollow space
"perspective"