The Ride of My Life - A childhood story

I stood in the line quietly. The pressure was building up as the roar from inside the room grew louder. I was waiting for this moment the whole summer and now it was only a few minutes away. People in line ahead of me were smoking cigarettes. Was there something they knew that I did not? I started to study the looks on the faces of those around me. I don't think anyone knew what to expect. There were some smiles, some frowns, and every so often people with the most petrified looks on their faces would get off the line and walk passed us. I wasn't going to let anything discourage me.

My friends were talking about all the good times we had together. The words went through one ear and out the other. My world seemed to have the volume turned down. I had to focus on my breathing as my chest started to feel heavy as the line shortened ever closer to the room ahead.

English: The welcoming sign over the entrance to "...

The train station for Main Street, U.S.A. at the M...

Walt Disney World Resort

Nobody ever came out the same way they came in. The end of the line was your last chance to decide whether or not you wanted to enter. The line kept getting shorter and I would glance at my friends to see if they were experiencing second thoughts. My friends were not the slightest bit phased. I secretly wanted my friends to get scared off the line, but they were still talking about the highlights of our day.

Finally we were so close to the door, that the roars and screams in the next room seemed to divert your attention from anything else but what was going on in there. My eyes had become bloodshot and my knees were weak. The people ahead of us in the line looked back once before...