“Forgiveness is not an occasional act,
it is a constant attitude.”
~ Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Our circle of friends
must be ever expanding
like a bouquet of balloons
a kaleidoscope of visions
views and voices tied
together with appreciation
acceptance and the common goal
of peace
So that we all rise together
My friends at Charles House and I wrote this poem after we read some peace poetry, like At the Un-National Monument along the Canadian Border by William Stafford and Outwitted by Edwin Markham.
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 
AMEN Bartholomew! 🙏🏼
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I’m preaching to the choir here but I’ll take it. Thanks!
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And that’s okay too Bartholomew! 😍💖🤩 You are so very welcome!
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Beautiful thoughts.
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Yeah, more hopeful than I would’ve written by myself. Perhaps they’re a good influence on me.
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Haha. :)
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Lovely sentiments, Bartholomew….unfortunately, I’m an introvert. 😉
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I’m an introvert too. Let’s write poems to advocate for other people getting along with each other and leaving us alone.
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Bwahaha…my laugh of the day. 🤣🤣🤣 Thank you, Bartholomew. I agree with your statement, but I can’t ever write poems about people getting along; I have them killing each other.
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I suppose as long as the murders are fantastical…
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😊🥂
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eloquent and lovely
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Thank you, JM.
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Loved the alliterations here! So effortlessly done. Beautiful message too. 😊
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Thanks. I can vouch for the effort. We spent a while thinking of v-words.
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It’s A GOOD THING…..if you can manage it…..
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Good things are often difficult.
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This is a great one, set the mission/vision of community.
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Thank you, CB.
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A wonderful statement of faith in humanity!
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Yeah, the old folks moderate my cynicism.
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:>)
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