Last Friday night was the Summer Solstice for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere and since a lot of us will be dealing with a heat wave this week, let’s write a summer poem.
For our Southern Hemisphere poets, write a winter poem. Embrace the cold and dark or recall memories of winters past.
Wherever you’re sitting on this tilted planet, 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.
Living Poetry 
part of an unfinished short story that i think can work as a poem:
It was hot early in the morning, around 9am I think, on this summer day. But at 16 years old, we could stand at the gates of hell laughing in the devil’s face, taunting him with, “Is that the best you’ve got?!”
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Posted by kentomaro | June 23, 2025, 8:10 AMYes, Ken, it could be a poem! I remember being invincible at 16. Not so anymore.
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Posted by crazy4yarn2 | June 23, 2025, 10:03 AMToday was not one of those days I would say was enjoyable getting out of bed!
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Posted by kentomaro | June 23, 2025, 10:49 AMVery nice. Thanks for sharing this snippet, Ken,
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Posted by Bartholomew Barker | June 23, 2025, 8:08 PMThanks for checking it out!
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Posted by kentomaro | June 25, 2025, 9:12 AMHeat Wave
No fun summer furnaceblasting heat with no relief.I cower under shadeless trees,and pray for watermelon rain.
https://writingaddiction2.wordpress.com/2025/06/23/heat-wave/
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Posted by crazy4yarn2 | June 23, 2025, 10:02 AMGreat work. Love the watermelon rain!!!
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Posted by Bartholomew Barker | June 23, 2025, 8:11 PMHere’s my effort:
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Posted by Bartholomew Barker | June 23, 2025, 10:52 PMAppealing
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Posted by Swamigalkodi Astrology | June 24, 2025, 10:38 PM