On
a beautiful day we walked a long way through Brooklyn Heights and
Dumbo, down streets that looked like other cities, to Brooklyn Bridge
Park to ride the famous carousel. As Jackie and Sara rode I leaned on
the glass barrier and took note of the surroundings. The merry-go-round
was built by the Philadelphia Toboggan Company of Germantown,
Philadelphia PA. When the sign rotated away you saw two drums behind it,
on either side; bass and snare. Little mallets beat a skittish,
mechanized tattoo as the organ played its roll of funhouse music. Around
the inner column mirrors were interspersed with odd bucolic scenes: A
little girl dangling a rag doll into a bucket. A maiden standing on a
rock beside a waterfall, holding aloft her bicycle. Outside, the
Brooklyn Bridge loomed over a patch of lawn and the walkway by the
river. Everyone. Everyone seemed very happy.
The glass upon which I leaned bore a stenciled message: PLEASE DO NOT LEAN ON THE GLASS.
A
wedding party took a turn: the couple in question, the best man, the
maid of honor, the ushers and the bridesmaids. The bride held her
bouquet like a sword and thrust it forward as the ride began. She didn’t
yell “charge.”