With Each Passing Year

Posted on 2022-09-27 by Bartholomew Barker

With Each Passing Year

Food loses its flavor.
The sun gets dimmer,
the atmosphere thinner.
I can’t catch my breath.

The Earth’s molten core
is spinning slower like a top
wobbling— I feel gravity tilt
beneath my feet as I walk.

Years fly by faster
than months once did—
something Einstein predicted
but I don’t understand.

The world, once smooth
and vibrant, is shriveling
like a grape turning
into a raisin.

I’m no scientist
but life on this planet
can’t be viable
for very much longer.

(Another two-prompt Tuesday: this poem inspired by the LP Monday Poetry Prompt and Sammi’s Weekend Writing Prompt.)

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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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24 Responses to With Each Passing Year

  1. butungislayp's avatar butungislayp says:
    2022-09-27 at 21:56

    Sad truth. Beautiful piece, Bart!💜

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  2. yourplateormine967244485's avatar yourplateormine967244485 says:
    2022-09-27 at 22:09

    Beautiful poem, I appreciate the images of your poem, and the subtle humor in your writing too. Though it is a sad state of the world today.

    Liked by 1 person

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  3. ivor20's avatar ivor20 says:
    2022-09-27 at 23:17

    I was an Industrial Chemist, and I agree Bart …

    Liked by 1 person

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  4. JeanMarie's avatar JeanMarie says:
    2022-09-28 at 00:48

    Moving and affecting piece. I felt my throat tighten in response.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  5. berniebell1955's avatar berniebell1955 says:
    2022-09-28 at 03:26

    Cheery sort ain’t ya’?

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  6. luisa zambrotta's avatar luisa zambrotta says:
    2022-09-28 at 05:54

    Beautiful poem: sad but true. The years go by faster and faster. Do you think it’s just Einstein’s theory of relativity?

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  7. luvgoodcarp's avatar luvgoodcarp says:
    2022-09-28 at 06:06

    Nicely done. But Mr. Einstein should mind his own business.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  8. sammicoxwriter's avatar sammicoxwriter says:
    2022-09-30 at 10:52

    Powerful, beautiful and sad. A very moving poem :-)

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  9. julydase's avatar Julydase says:
    2022-11-04 at 20:06

    Lovely…I feel the inevitable march of time as well.

    Liked by 1 person

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