Death on the Thunderbolt

Splashing kids,

Soaking water,

Fun for all,

Excitement fills the air.

Go cart racing,

Faster and faster,

The pedal to the medal,

The finest of the day.

Spinning teacups make me laugh.

Popcorn and hot dogs,

Perfume the air.

Bubbling happiness,

Spreading through my body,

It’s Six Flags!

The only flaw,

Is very tall.

Screeching metal and wood,

Fill the view.

Painted white,

It’s quite a sight,

Even for the brave of heart,

Who already know they are saints.

God looks down,

From his safe, golden throne,

Pointing to me,

The next one judged.

Satan listens in,

My fate is decided.

Devils with tails and pitchforks,

One my mother,

Another my brother,

Herd me toward the ride,

Dragging me to the death monster.

To that big, white, rickety beast,

Fitly dubbed the Thunderbolt.

The shrieking beast,

Extending claws of metal,

Pulling,

Jerking,

Taking me away from the safety of land,

That solid substance beneath me.

Ghosts and shadows of the dead,

Line the electric chairs,

All behind me.

I don’t belong here.

They won’t feel the pain,

The torturous drop will cause.

Devil horns strap me in,

Pulling the single safety line,

Down onto me.

Terror fills my brain,

All goes black and white,

No time to scream,

No time to think,

Of all that could happen.

Only one thought to process,

 The desperate need to cling,

To the one bar keeping me,

From the thousand foot drop,

Daring me to ride on.

Up and up and up,

My heart is stuck in my throat,

My stomach churns and flips,

Doing secret gymnast stunts,

And trying to get away with it.

There is no hope left.

The last of the upward road is gone.

All is downhill to hell.

Save me God,

I’m too young to die.

The menacing descent,

Stares at me everywhere I look.

Scorning me.

Agony and anguish,

Depicted in every foot.

The beast slows to a halt,

My breath stops,

The world stops,

The sounds stop.

Maybe I’ll be saved!

The brute mockingly laughs,

Slowly proceeds forward,

Inch by inch,

Centimeter by centimeter,

Till

It’s

Over

The

EDGE!

A roaring wind,

No more floating in space.

The monster pulls,

I drop,

Down the deadly mountain.

The shuddering shock of delight,

Quickly snarls into fear.

Never stopping,

Always going to the bottom.

No air to breath,

Yet my lungs gasp and gasp,

Wanting what it cannot have.

Vision blinking,

Black and white,

Oh no!
It’s gone,

A bellowing darkness,

Tearing,

Shredding,

Trying to destroy.

Up again,

How dare the monster!

Suddenly leveling,

Whew,

It’s over.

Colors come back,

The world is nice,

Brighter than before.

Sharp twist to the right,

Another to the left,

Up and down,

Why won’t it just choose its direction?

My stomach crashes,

Left then right then left again,

When will this ride be over!

Chaos seems to go forever.

My body no longer follows my orders,

Simply moving with the car,

Following its every command,

No matter how much I protest.

It seems to slow time and time again,

Bringing false hope,

To my begging heart.

Ready to surrender,

Let me take the quick trip to hell,

I finally see God push,

The glorious “stop” button.

The roller coaster slows,

Giving me relief.

Finally halting.

An angel in disguise,

Walks right on up.

Lifting up the bar,

He cordially says goodbye.

Stumbling from the death trap,

My devils laugh in glee.

They enjoyed the ride,

But definitely not me.

The rock-hard ground is better,

It will never ever move.

God left our wings in heaven,

For a very worthy reason.

Let the eagles and planes,

 The ravens and crows,

Keep dominion of the heavens,

While I’ll keep it down below.

Just remember before you ride,

A frightening rolling beast.

The birds will fly high,

And you will die,

The day your devils forget,

To strap you in your seat.