A swing set is an escape, 
a steel tower of daydreams
cradling the innocence of childhood
as it hurtles through the air, unafraid

I travel along, a stowaway, 
a fugitive from the burden of monotony,
from carrying duty and obligation,
flying up and away like a kite on a rebel wind.

Out like the winged seed 
of a pinecone I sail, 
darting, whirling, fluttering, 
until I gently return to the ground,

where I burrow down 
into the bitter richness of the soil,
shedding my brittle shell 
and sprouting fresh into the wide world again.