Blistering weather withers As cooler climes take over Reflecting Revealing the emptiness that surrounds Pervading the hollowness that echoes Like an empty cavern Floating through a ravine of longing Waiting For the improvements that signal Recuperation Regaining the equanimity Of our own circle of life Holding fast to passions and fancies Foibles and follies Hopes and dreams Fears and failures Following the road to the precipice Onward Holding hands Always reaching for the next plateau Always seeking the unanswered question And laughing To cover up the unknown The sham laughter of sorrow To hide the tears That flow too readily for propriety Yet shrink with hope Fleeting And rise again On a roller-coaster of fate