Beware of the hazards and traps of life

At Old St. Andrews hazards breed
as bunkers line the way.
The wind and cold will test golf’s greatest ones.
The links where this grand game began
is not an easy course.
It is a battlefield for Hogan’s sons.

Trials and temptations are
the norm for those who play.
Add to this mix the ego’s appetite.
The risks of greed that fame invites
give way to traps that wait.
The game of golf’s a test to do what’s right.

So too the Game of Life, me thinks.
There’re trials, traps and tests.
There’s much that seeks to lure us out of bounds.
The target we are aiming at
is fraught with challenges.
Temptations have the means to take us down.

Much like in golf, we stay the course.
When tempted to give up
we seek God’s help to navigate life’s trials.
When in the rough, our Caddy helps us
put the ball in play.
And in the end our tears have morphed to smiles.

Unlike a claret jug, our prize
is far more valuable.
A crown awaits within our life to come.
Come that sweet day our trials here
will seem to be worthwhile
while hearing God the Father say “Well done!”