For today’s prompt (the final Two-for-Tuesday prompt of the month), write a love and/or anti-love poem.
Earth Day 2022
for Wynn Bruce
You sacrificed yourself
for us— for all of us
outside the Supreme Court
While we drove our hybrids
wrote letters to the editor
signed online petitions
You became a metaphor
for the planet
you set yourself on fire
You burned and you died
hoping to prevent that fate
from befalling us
I love your courage
I hate that you had to do it
and I fear it will not matter
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.
Bartholomew Barker, Poet 
Oh dear God. How horrible, sad, frustrating. You did a nice job on the tribute but damn….
LikeLiked by 2 people
Yeah. My poem pales before his action.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes, well said. Sadly, only those that care are affected by his sacrifice … it’s the ones that do not …. that should. 🙏
LikeLiked by 1 person
Too true. Too true.
LikeLike
Thank you for your tribute. 😔
LikeLiked by 1 person
You’re welcome. Let’s see what we can do so he won’t have died in vain.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes, I agree and will do my part! We celebrate all month long at my school with our students! 💝
LikeLiked by 1 person
Excellent!
LikeLike
For all of us outside the Supreme Court. Stunning Tribute to one of our Martyrs. Those last three ending lines and that final one just ripped me.
I believe all sacrifice matters.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Thanks. Let’s hope.
LikeLike
It’s the intention that matters. It’s matter too or it’s energy that can become matter. You know what I mean. Relativity and all that.
LikeLiked by 1 person
That powerful poem is sadly accurate. How much bigger a gesture can a person make than to die for a belief?
LikeLiked by 2 people
Agreed.
LikeLiked by 1 person