PEANUTS OF THE PAST:
PREVIOUS COMMENTS FROM THE PEANUT GALLERY!

This week's poem: "The Coming"
Author: Minister Demeterius Smith aka "FLITE"
Copyright notice: © Demeterius Smith
Poets Niche Group #7

THE COMING

It's a bright sunny day when suddenly
The sun dips into the sea
But the day is still bright
For you appear where the sun use to be
A smile on your face, sword in your hand
The Son-of-Man, come to reclaim your land
There was no warning, you appeared in a glance
As the Holy trumpets play the final song
The mountains get up and dance
The stars take on the form of a crown
As they gather around your head
The earth and sea give up their dead
The sky turns blood red
You came quickly-just like you said
The rocks cry out Hallelujah
I fall on my face with raised hands
Giving all praises to you
Lightning flashes and is frozen in the sky
Those who didn't believe ask why
As the saints are lifted into the sky
Men beg to die, as fire falls from the sky
The seas go dry, the mysteries of the deep are no more
Power galore
Is the very essence of your name
Life was never meant to be a game
Those who played and those who playa hate
Are swallowed by Hell's open gate
The slain prophets can hardly wait
For glorification is their fate
The evil beast appears
People worship him out of fear
The people and beast are destroyed
For love reigns supreme here
Glory and majesty are yours for everlasting years
No more death, pain, or tears
Jesus gathers the sheep into his right hand
The goats are in his left
With their last breath, those in the left
They cry out why destroy us, Master why
He looks at those in the left and says
You followed the Devil, and from the beginning he lied
He smiles at those in his right and says
These are those who were faithful until they died

FLITE

Comments from the poet(s):"Hello everyone. Jesus said no man know the day nor hour that He would come. This came to me in the car the other day so I just thought I would share it with you. Remember, be ye all so ready. May God bless, FLITE"

Here were some of the comments received from the Peanut Gallery:

Commentary by: bams

When my mother found out I was writing poetry, she threw me for a loop when she said that Once Upon A Time, *she* wrote poetry herself. Aside from the blinders some of us tend to wear regarding our parents (seeing them as being "only" Parents, as if that is all they are, as opposed to fully-formed creatures like, well, us!), I also tripped out over the notion that my deeply religious mama could gather up enough angst to be a poet. A Professional Christian can't write poetry, right? Of course, that kind of thinking is goofy, and FLITE disproves it with each piece he writes. "The Coming", to me, reads more like rap than "just" poetry, and I wouldn't at all be surprised if FLITE performed it as such in a service or two. As I re-read it for this critique, it occurred to me that some of his lines rhyme; usually, my "thing" about rhyming poetry quickly notices it when it's there, but not so this time. I consider that A Good Thing, if only because Good Poetry of *any* type should allow the reader to get past their own hangups about what they're reading (and I fully admit that I have big Issues; I'm Owning them, though...) I particularly enjoyed FLITE's descriptive passages (e.g., "The mountains get up and dance/The stars take on the form of a crown/As they gather around your head/The earth and sea give up their dead"); they at once "scared" and fascinated me, but in a way quite unlike Rev. Barron's "hellandamnation" preaching did as a child. I'll put it like this: I ain't big on sermons, but I think I'd sit still for one of FLITE's services. One thing's for sure: whenever I start to feel doubt about where I am spiritually, FLITE's pieces help bring me back into focus; with his words in my eyes, and Fred Hammond playing in my ears, I start ta feelin' quite fine.

------ Comment submitted by: Pat Thomas

"The Coming" by Flite was truly a wonderful poem! It was so full of the truth...I'll keep this poem in my "book of poems to remember!" Thank you, Flite, for your poem!

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Final comments from bams:

My thanks to FLITE for his inspirational piece, and to Pat for her critique of same. Your comment came right on time, Pat--just before I was about to give up hope that someone else would join in the commentary! Danke, sweets.