There was a teen who rode the Hypersonic Express every day to work to support his parents and nine younger siblings. He took pride in his ability to take care of his family, though sometimes he was afraid he’d never be able to get out and begin his own.

On this particular day, this young man waited at the station patiently holding a large brown paper bag full of tools. As he waited, he listened to a well groomed, only slightly older man in a blazer and slacks speak loudly from a box in the center of the station.

“Brothers and sisters,” called the man. “You must turn from your wicked ways. You must stop supporting this evil.” He pointed to the vacuum sealed tunnel that housed the Express. “You must stop wasting your lives on frivolous things. Stop moving so quickly. You’re missing so much. The Lord says to be quiet and know that I am God. He will only then hear your pleas and bless you.”

The young working man laughed a bit louder than he meant to and drew the attention of the preacher. “Why do you laugh?” asked the speaker.

“Because your god must never have had a family to provide for.”

“Everyone is his family. And he provided the whole world for us. But we have abused it.”

“I’ve lived my whole life for others,” argued the younger man.

“Until you live your whole life for God, you will never be truly happy,” replied the speaker.

“How can you say these things? You don’t even know me?”

“We are all sinners who have fallen short of the glory of God. He made us. He gave us life. He gave you the ability to work and care for others. You should be thankful. He loves you.”

The younger man did not know how to respond. It seemed pointless. The preacher was too far removed; he would never understand. The train arrived and the station emptied. The preacher was left talking to the air, but the teen wondered if the man had ever been talking to anything else.