"In Memory of Abraham Lincoln" by D. Wiest‘Flying Home’ by Michael Charles Maibach The Society February 16, 2022 Beauty, Poetry 10 Comments . Flying Home Alas, I missed My flight back Home, After all these years In life I’ve roamed. I had then raced To make my flight, I thought I had My timing right. But there before My startled eyes The clouds rolled in And filled the skies! The plane stood still On tarmac flat, As rain poured down— Imagine that! I bowed my head— Resigned to stay, In this cold world Another day. When clouds do lift, When sun does rise, I’ll finally fly Back to that prize. That prize of Home, The place I need, To rest my soul, My soul then freed. . . Michael Charles Maibach began writing poems at age nine. Since then he has continued writing poems, and sharing them with friends. His career has involved global business diplomacy. He is a native of Peoria, Illinois. Today Michael resides in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia. More of his poems are found at www.MaibachPoems.us or on Facebook. NOTE TO READERS: If you enjoyed this poem or other content, please consider making a donation to the Society of Classical Poets. The Society of Classical Poets does not endorse any views expressed in individual poems or commentary. Trending now: 10 Responses James Sale February 16, 2022 No place like home, Michael, to restore the soul! Thanks. Reply Michael C. Maibach March 19, 2022 Thank you James. Reply Damian Robin February 16, 2022 Beautiful sentiments: that I interpret as : even the politically powerful and influential must acquiesce to higher deities who keep their checks and balances by using everyday matters, e.g. the weather, and man’s judgment of how it will pan out. Reply Michael C. Maibach February 16, 2022 Thank you James and Damian. I had in mind here going from this imperfect world to what we Christians call the Heaven of our Creator. Michael Reply sally cook February 16, 2022 Yes, I saw that – a lovely thought. Damian Robin February 16, 2022 Thank you, Michael. Joseph S. Salemi February 16, 2022 Michael does something interesting in his fourth quatrain, the smack-dab middle of the poem. He gives us the image of an airplane grounded on the tarmac because of heavy rain, and so the reader assumes that it is all about a simple, mundane flight delay. But in the very next quatrain he mentions that the flight is to take the speaker out of “this cold world.” Suddenly the poem takes on a mood of mortality and unfulfilled longing. Reply Michael Maibach February 17, 2022 Exactly Joseph! Thank you. Michael Reply Jack DesBois February 16, 2022 Thank you, Michael. I just recently read John Bunyan’s “Pilgrim’s Progress.” Your poem makes me wonder how Bunyan might have written his allegory differently had he lived in the Age of Flight. Your allegory, for all its brevity, has some delightful twists – at first I thought this soul was missing his one chance to fly to Heaven due to his own miscalculation (like the five foolish virgins with no oil in their lamps), but it soon becomes clear that it is heavenly forces that are staying the flight, not the soul’s faults – and, most importantly, the flight is merely delayed indefinitely, not canceled. The allegory seems to me to be of a near-death experience. Reply Michael Maibach February 17, 2022 Thank you Jack. The old man thought his work was finally done, that it was his time – finally – to return to his Crestor. But that Creator wanted more from him before leaving. Reply Leave a Reply Cancel ReplyYour email address will not be published.CommentName* Email* Website Δ This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
Damian Robin February 16, 2022 Beautiful sentiments: that I interpret as : even the politically powerful and influential must acquiesce to higher deities who keep their checks and balances by using everyday matters, e.g. the weather, and man’s judgment of how it will pan out. Reply
Michael C. Maibach February 16, 2022 Thank you James and Damian. I had in mind here going from this imperfect world to what we Christians call the Heaven of our Creator. Michael Reply
Joseph S. Salemi February 16, 2022 Michael does something interesting in his fourth quatrain, the smack-dab middle of the poem. He gives us the image of an airplane grounded on the tarmac because of heavy rain, and so the reader assumes that it is all about a simple, mundane flight delay. But in the very next quatrain he mentions that the flight is to take the speaker out of “this cold world.” Suddenly the poem takes on a mood of mortality and unfulfilled longing. Reply
Jack DesBois February 16, 2022 Thank you, Michael. I just recently read John Bunyan’s “Pilgrim’s Progress.” Your poem makes me wonder how Bunyan might have written his allegory differently had he lived in the Age of Flight. Your allegory, for all its brevity, has some delightful twists – at first I thought this soul was missing his one chance to fly to Heaven due to his own miscalculation (like the five foolish virgins with no oil in their lamps), but it soon becomes clear that it is heavenly forces that are staying the flight, not the soul’s faults – and, most importantly, the flight is merely delayed indefinitely, not canceled. The allegory seems to me to be of a near-death experience. Reply
Michael Maibach February 17, 2022 Thank you Jack. The old man thought his work was finally done, that it was his time – finally – to return to his Crestor. But that Creator wanted more from him before leaving. Reply
