Life, he said with his ever present smile,
is very much like an amusement park.
The preacher, priest, rabbi stands
at the ticket booth, gladly taking your money
and telling you to have a good time,
but reminding you of the penalty
for not following the rules he or she
hands you, neatly bound and printed
in longer or shorter versions depending
on who is at the turnstile that day.
And once inside, you pick your ride,
head into tunnels never knowing
which way things will turn, will there
be a sudden drop, a slow climb,
how you might feel when you arrive
at the end, which ride you will choose
to take next, or if you want to leave
the park behind, save your money
and hope that by doing so you
do not miss that hidden door to heaven
like the man at the ticket booth promised.