Riding the bumps

Have you ever noticed that things are a lot scarier if we don’t know what’s about to happen?

We went to Adventure World yesterday and Emily wanted to go on the Tunnel of Terror. It’s an enclosed water slide and it takes two people at a time in a double rubber ring kind of raft. Emily sat up front and I was in the back.

What I didn’t realise until we started moving rapidly through the tube was that it’s completely black inside. There we were being shot down a tube in complete darkness, being tossed from side to side as the tube changed direction. It was rather scary. I don’t think Emily found it scary because she’s a ten year old adrenaline junky, but I was a little concerned.

I was sure that once was enough for me but after a lot of prompting by Emily, I was finally prepared to have another go.

It was so much more fun the second time around because I knew exactly what to expect. What was scary the first time was thrilling the second time. I was very keen to go a third time but it was the end of the day and they had just closed the ride.

Amazing. The thing that caused me to shudder the first time was something that I wanted to do again and again.

Life’s a lot like that. It can be dark and we don’t know which way we’ll be twisted and thrown but if we know that there’s light at the end of the tunnel and there’s someone we can trust to get us there safely, we’re a lot more prepared to ride the bumps on the way. We may still end up with a few bruises but if our focus stays strong, we can be assured that we’ll make it. It can also help if someone is there to give us a little push to tackle the things that concern us, even if it is a ten year old girl.

What are you like with ‘scary rides’? Are you the first one in line for the roller coaster? Does your stomach allow you to tackle the extreme machines that send people into fits of screaming at the local show or amusement park? Can you describe that tension between terror and exhilaration? I’d love to hear from you in the comments section of this post.

Posted by Rodney Olsen

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About the author

Rodney Olsen

Rodney is a husband, father, cyclist, blogger and podcaster from Perth Western Australia.

He has worked in radio at Perth's media ministry Sonshine for over 25 years and has previously worked at ministries such as Compassion Australia and Bible Society.

The views he expresses here are his own.

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1 Comment

  • Eeeek! Don’t like scary rides AT ALL. When I used to go to the show, I was the one who ended up holding all the bags. I guess being afraid of heights doesn’t help either.

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