Famous Last Words

          Dusk had fallen at the fairgrounds, and now all the amusement rides were beckoning with their flashing, swirling kaleidoscope of bright lights. Grabbing her father's hand, Carrie tugged him to the base of something that resembled a Ferris wheel. Sensing his reluctance, she pleaded," Please Dad? Look, it's not too fast, or too high. This will be the last one, I promise." Watching the gondolas gently swing past him, the hesitant father sighed, gulped, and agreed. "This isn't scary at all."

         Flashing a triumphant grin, Carrie pulled him into the next seat before he had a chance to change his mind. Snapping the bar and belts into place, Daddy and daughter flashed a thumbs-up to the rest of the family as they were carried up and away. For a brief few minutes, both of them swayed gently while they admired the panoramic view.

          Without warning, no alarm, no bell, no announcement, the ride metamorphosed into a shrieking dervish. No longer rising and descending in an arc at a leisurely pace, the gondolas were spinning horizontally, skimming the ground. In a blur, Carrie and her parent zipped past open-mouthed bystanders. Inexplicably, the machinery screeched to a jolting stop only to swirl super fast in the opposite direction. A grim-faced father clung to the bar bruising his ribs. Carrie whooped and hollered.

         An ashen-skinned, trembling man stumbled away from the ride, while Carrie ran to her mother blurting, "Mom, Dad said the 's' word!" Knowing full well the forbidden word her daughter meant, Mom teased. "Was it 'shoot', 'shucks', or 'silly'?" "No, Mom," crowed Carrie, "it was shit! Dad yelled shit!"

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