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
the metal was melted
in the furnace hot enough
the meddle was tested
on an anvil of strong stock
with skill it was worked
to serve what end
only the smithy can know
with a ping and a crack
the flaw is revealed
thrown on the floor with
scraps of iron, tin and copper
no longer suitable for
the task envisioned
left to cool back down
to the coldness of unbeing
but the craftsman is thrifty
nothing ever goes to waste
the scrap of this day
will be chosen for another
project tomorrow
like these words on the page
nothing ever goes to waste
LikeLiked by 6 people
Posted by Chris Clarke | September 2, 2024, 11:25 AMLove the way you brought it back to poetry at the end. Well done!
LikeLike
Posted by Bartholomew Barker | September 2, 2024, 7:54 PMhttps://nolchafox2.wixsite.com/nolcha-s-written-wor/post/u-turn
LikeLiked by 2 people
Posted by crazy4yarn2 | September 2, 2024, 12:07 PMVery nice. I love “twilight’s neckline plunge”. Well done.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Posted by Bartholomew Barker | September 2, 2024, 7:57 PMThank you and happy Labor Day!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Posted by crazy4yarn2 | September 2, 2024, 8:55 PM