Driving across Kansas

Posted on 2021-06-25 by Bartholomew Barker

Driving across Kansas
highways straight
as wind shear

Rain drapes the road
wipers useless against the storm
headlights losing to darkness

Flat applause of large drops
against the windshield
changes to sharp cracks
as white peas bounce
off the hood

I hear a train
tires lose traction
spinning against the wind
and somehow I’m rising
without a hill

I wake up dizzy
painful lump on my head
and a new pair of shoes
bright ruby red

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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.
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11 Responses to Driving across Kansas

  1. ivor20's avatar ivor20 says:
    2021-06-25 at 21:41

    Now that’s a rough road trip .. !!

    Liked by 1 person

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  3. JeanMarie's avatar JeanMarie says:
    2021-06-26 at 00:27

    Great storm description. Kansas will do that to ya.

    Liked by 1 person

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  4. Lucy's avatar Lucy says:
    2021-06-26 at 00:36

    Very vivid!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  5. Lisa Tomey-Zonneveld's avatar Lisa Tomey says:
    2021-06-26 at 23:57

    Great twist at the end and hail will now be white peas from now on.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

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