anna stares out of the window it s her eighty fifth spring she tries to concentrate on something her face is strained and she s confused at the walls in this room and all the strangers standing around her chair they brought her photographs in frames they are using her name but she just smiles politely at their embrace and anna introduces herself again a man picks up her hand and says anna look the spring has come and your carousel is waiting it s 1925 in new orleans you are in your favorite dress your brother is at your dad s hand and you re on your way to the harborfest there will be apples on sticks and fish stands and you ll get to wave at the passing ships and your daddy will buy you something at the end and anna tries to form a thought but at the end she s forgotten where she started from there s something she would like to say but the words in her head seem to have got away can anna come out and play and over all that is inside her a curtain is closing in her deep brown eyes well it s like someone s built a wall and through the very last cracks anna extends her hand and a little girl calls please don t let me fall it s 1925 in new orleans you are in your favorite dress your brother is at your dad s hand and you re on your way to the harborfest there will be apples on sticks and fish stands and you ll get to wave at the passing ships and your daddy will buy you something at the end well there s so much you must have witnessed as the whole world changed child at the onset of the jazz age and it was long before elvis and rock and roll they told you there will be music you just wait it s 1925 in new orleans you are in your favorite dress your brother is at your dad s hand and you re on your way to the harborfest there will be apples on sticks and fish stands and you ll get to wave at the passing ships and your daddy will buy you something at the end what do you think of it all as you are so small under your blanket here in this hospital i love you tell your bones not to let go but your heart is beating slowly now the spring has come but one small leaf was falling falling falling