Don’t take this prompt lying down. Post your poem in the comments below.
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.
Drowning
Drunk in sunshine
and flowered petals
rich, sweet, soft, delicate blooms
my dreams and loves
a million years ago
it all comes back to me
drunk in the sunshine
of me being me
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Posted by DanielleM | March 3, 2025, 8:18 AMLovely. I especially liked the “drunk in sunshine” repetition. Well done!
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Posted by Bartholomew Barker | March 3, 2025, 7:38 PMThanks. I appreciate your thoughts, it was a fun prompt.
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Posted by DanielleM | March 4, 2025, 12:23 AMVicious Beauty
They look so pretty in a vase,
but don’t walk out among them.
In a horde, they’re cannibals
who’ll eat you into yellow.
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Posted by crazy4yarn2 | March 3, 2025, 11:07 AMHa! Nicely done, Nolcha!
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Posted by Bartholomew Barker | March 3, 2025, 7:40 PMWhen Magic Goes Awry (a Limerick)
There once was a wizard whose powers
Went awry in night-time hours.
For he went to his bed,
Cast a spell in his head,
And woke up surrounded by flowers.
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Posted by Dan | March 4, 2025, 8:08 AMHa! Great limerick, Dan.
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Posted by Bartholomew Barker | March 4, 2025, 10:24 PMA bed of Roses
Roses are considered the most romantic flower.
Within their delicate petals, they contain all the power.
The fragrance so sweet, tender and mild.
A move intended to beguile?
They exude the essence of love.
They are gentle in expression; whereas we tend to shove.
They show sentiments we can’t express in words.
Does it show how special I am to you? Separate from the herds.
Are you saying I am THE natural beauty to thee?
In your eyes, I’m all that you see?
Is this just a ‘romanticized’ gesture?
Questions and feelings to fester?
Delicate
Gentle
Soft
Sweet
Fair
Give me a single rose,
show me you care?
Present me with a dozen roses,
your soul to me, bear?
Lay me down in a bed of rose petals, to prove your devotion to me?
The thicker the layer, the more love I see?
Give me a single rose,
show me that you care.
Give me a single rose,
if you dare.
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Posted by Chico’s Mom | March 4, 2025, 11:23 AMFlorid! Nice job with the ending. Thanks for sharing, Jolene!
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Posted by Bartholomew Barker | March 4, 2025, 10:24 PMThank you 💕 Thank you for the prompt. 🥰
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Posted by Chico’s Mom | March 5, 2025, 7:29 AMI dreamed a dream
where what was real
and what was not
made no difference
to the scene
But grasped in life
with eyes now open
a magic slab engaged
light streamed
images not constrained
the sharpened edge
of real and not
is now a froth
indiscernible from
the night before
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Posted by Chris Clarke | March 4, 2025, 5:35 PMVery cool take on the image. I especially liked the final stanza. Nice work, Chris.
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Posted by Bartholomew Barker | March 4, 2025, 10:20 PMObsession
Young flowers hug an old love
Yellow kisses for a weathered ruddy face
Boisterous bisous effulgently played
Daffodils grow shy
falling all over themselves
in a bid to claim their muse.
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Posted by utopicdystopian | March 4, 2026, 10:21 AMA Bonus Poem! Great ending in this one.
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Posted by Bartholomew Barker | March 4, 2026, 6:38 PM