The Day the World Almost Came to an End by Pearl Crayton

The story opens with the narrator speaking her frame of mind and position in RELIGION. Despite following her parents' wishes and attending church, this young girl considers herself a sinner. From her propective, '' getting religion'' would force her to make do without all the, ''many delicious sins to get around into.'' Her stance on this issue gets a rude awakening one day when her friend, Rena, tells her the world is coming to an end. The calamity that would cause the world to end; an eclipse. At first, the narrator is not bothered but Rena tells her that Reverend Davis said that time is, '' winding up.'' Her mind is now loaded with the, '' SOPPOSING'' the world did come to an end theory. She thinks about hell and getting burnt for an eternity. When her father, a deacon, comes home, she seeks out his counsel and advice. Her father just tells her that the end of the world could happen anytime and that they would never know the exact time or date. Only God knows that. The narrator stays awake that night. Upon hearing a strange rumbling, racket-like noise, she believes that the world is coming to an end and rushes out into the road yelling at the top of her lungs that the world is coming to an end. At last, her fater catches her and tells her that the noise only came from a plane. She is relieved and cries deeply. She is then struck with a revelation that life - all of it should be lived - really lived. The story ends.

This story is written in First Person Retrosective since the narrator is recalling events from the past which have greatly affected her. The story takes place in a village in a plantation in Louisiana. There are many themes displayed in this story such as Religion, Naivete, Curiosity, Superstition, Innocence, Fear of God and Biblical Illusion.