Neither Heaven Nor Hell

I'm not at all desirous of Heaven;

Nor do I have a fear of Hell.

That we end up in either place

Is--to me--a very hard sell.

 

Some believe in purgatory--

Another place that lies in between

The other two. End up there

And you are given the chance to come clean.

 

Many people long to know

That a certain sense of justice prevails--

That we must pay for any wrongdoing.

They try to spell out what that entails:

 

Doing good and having specific

Beliefs will help you secure a place

In some heavenly realm where you

Will suffer no longer and live in grace.

 

But if that isn't the path for you,

Then, oh, no, heaven forbid!

You will have to face punishment

For all the evil things that you did.

 

It's both a lure and a scare tactic.

That's what the concept seems to me.

It's almost as though we go through life

Behaving like a parolee.

 

Is human nature such that we need

To receive a punishment or reward

For being bad or good, which applies

To everybody across the board?

 

Wouldn't it be enough to say

That being bad is wrong for you,

While doing good is appropriate

Merely because it's the right thing to do?

 

Is human nature also such

That people feel that by and large

No one should reap the benefits

Of anything out there free of charge?

 

And good and bad--for goodness’ sake--

Are relative, to say the least.

And ludicrous it is to think

That anyone bears the "mark of the beast."

 

After we die, returning to what

We were before we were born makes sense.

Ultimately, since no one knows

For sure, we all remain in suspense.

 

-by Bob B (7-5-22)