There's that moment in the film
when Eddie Murphy
stands on a few precarious
stepping stones that float
over a black abyss
he reaches out and drops a coin to listen
for the sound the coin will make
when it hits bottom
somewhere far below

And the brief look of terror and astonishment
when it dawns on him that no sound
is forthcoming
and that means - could it be?
that the abyss he's standing on
isn't just deep
it's infinite

Given the actor and the plot
it's a great laugh
partly because it's also true
because in life
we each are balancing
not always steadily
over a space
endless in depth
and in the beauty
of the worlds that it contains
and thinking of the leap
beyond this life
that each of us must take
it's good to know
there's nothing there to fear
that when we leap
into that space
while at the first
it may appear like falling
there is no bottom
and no gravity to pull us down
weightless at last
we're safe in letting go