About Bartholomew Barker
Bartholomew Barker is an organizer of Living Poetry, a collection of poets in the Triangle region of North Carolina where he has hosted a monthly feedback workshop for more than decade. His first poetry collection, Wednesday Night Regular, written in and about strip clubs, was published in 2013. His second, Milkshakes and Chilidogs, a chapbook of food inspired poetry was served in 2017. He was nominated for a Pushcart Prize in 2021. Born and raised in Ohio, studied in Chicago, he worked in Connecticut for nearly twenty years before moving to Hillsborough where he lives and writes poetry.
Living Poetry
Ode to Maud Gonne on This,
Our Independence Day
——————————————–
She entered the room,
silently, unannounced,
yet there was a radiance about her,
which drew all focus.
Her eyes seemed to sparkle
beneath a shy demeanor
which belied the beauty,
the charm, the grace,
the power within her gait.
As she took a seat,
the room fell silent,
a freeze-framed cameo
of anticipation.
now motionlessly
rumbling through the floor.
Suddenly, an unspoken roar of ”freedom”
shattered every window
pounded on every door.
Subservient to a distant master
we would be no more.
Now that SHE came into the room.
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Posted by Donncha | July 3, 2023, 8:50 AMYeats would be jealous. Well done!
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Posted by Bartholomew Barker | July 3, 2023, 6:50 PMA bit of cheating … I wrote an entire play titled Gonne/Yeats …. Produced multiple times, notably at the NY Yeats Society annual dinner.
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Posted by Donncha | July 3, 2023, 8:11 PMSparklies
I hold a sparkler in my hand
to add to my collection
of shiny things that grab my eye
and mess with my attention.
Shiny shells and shiny stones
and sun and wind and moon,
even if it doesn’t move
my thoughts are sure to follow.
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Posted by nolchafox | July 3, 2023, 8:59 AMLovely, especially the final line. Great work!
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Posted by Bartholomew Barker | July 3, 2023, 6:53 PMThanks!
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Posted by nolchafox | July 3, 2023, 7:33 PMLikeLiked by 1 person
Posted by Gypsie-Ami Offenbacher-Ferris | July 3, 2023, 9:20 AMExcellent haiku, especially the middle line. Wow!
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Posted by Bartholomew Barker | July 3, 2023, 6:55 PMThank you so much Bartholomew! ☺️
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Posted by Gypsie-Ami Offenbacher-Ferris | July 4, 2023, 1:21 AMLikeLike
Posted by Bartholomew Barker | July 3, 2023, 9:07 PMSparklers all dream of
being Thermite-on-a-Stick
with balls of liquid metal
fly their wedding dance
irom and aluminium
consuming the stick
consuming the guests
consuming the night
for as long as the lovely couple
can then it’s time to go home
glowing insects lights
the way away from
their bed of consummation
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Posted by Chris Clarke | July 4, 2023, 12:15 AMLovely! Especially the last three lines. Great work!
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Posted by Bartholomew Barker | July 4, 2023, 9:59 AM