Waking Lonely as a Cloud

Posted on 2025-03-25 by Bartholomew Barker

Waking up in another bed
of flowers. I should learn
to count drinks instead of cards
since alcohol throws off my math.

Lost another jacket and proverbial shirt.
Sharp rock poking my left kidney.
Hope my wallet is still in my soggy
back pocket and that’s just the morning dew.

Probably a good time to reassess
life choices once my headache lifts
then I notice the host of golden daffodils
reassuring, you’re not rock bottom yet.

And another disappointing morning
ends with my heart dancing.

 

For the March Visual Poetry Prompt and Monday’s Poetry Prompt and William Wordsworth.

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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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39 Responses to Waking Lonely as a Cloud

  2. berniebell1955's avatar berniebell1955 says:
    2025-03-26 at 04:20

    I’m hoping this was written many years ago!

    Liked by 1 person

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  3. luisa zambrotta's avatar luisa zambrotta says:
    2025-03-26 at 05:19

    Great poem and fabulous image!!!

    Liked by 1 person

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  6. Violet Lentz's avatar Violet Lentz says:
    2025-03-26 at 09:48

    I love this. It definitely reinforces my decision to not drink.

    Liked by 1 person

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  7. mitchteemley's avatar mitchteemley says:
    2025-03-26 at 10:27

    Beautifully evocative of an addict’s regrets and humanity.

    Liked by 2 people

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  8. Kimberly Vargas Agnese's avatar Kimberly Vargas Agnese says:
    2025-03-26 at 13:22

    Bam! Nailed it! Very good:)

    Liked by 1 person

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  9. Cheryl Batavia's avatar Cheryl Batavia says:
    2025-03-26 at 14:34

    Bart, this wonderfully written poem and gorgeous photo remind me that it is a good thing I am not a drinker or a gambler. I am afraid I might have woken up in some place much worse than a field of daffodils! 🌼🌼🌼

    Liked by 2 people

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    • Bartholomew Barker's avatar Bartholomew Barker says:
      2025-03-26 at 18:43

      I would assert that there’s no better place to wake up than in a field of daffodils.

      Liked by 1 person

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    • berniebell1955's avatar berniebell1955 says:
      2025-03-27 at 04:29

      I used to know a young lass whose friend woke up in a skip with no memory of how she came to be there. I asked wasn’t she worried about this, and her answer was that she couldn’t remember, so it didn’t matter!

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      • Cheryl Batavia's avatar Cheryl Batavia says:
        2025-03-27 at 12:48

        Wow! Thank you, Bernie, for sharing this chilling story. At 75, my memory is becoming less reliable, but I see a young girl waking up with no memory of how she got there or what might have happened to her truly alarming! I hope she didn’t come down with a case of something afterwards!

        Liked by 2 people

      • Bartholomew Barker's avatar Bartholomew Barker says:
        2025-03-27 at 21:23

        I’d be jealous that black-out drunk me was having more fun than merely tipsy me. Or, worse still, finding more inspiration and not writing it down!

        Liked by 1 person

  11. Nicole Smith's avatar Nicole Smith says:
    2025-03-26 at 18:40

    Love that he found the hope at the end there.

    Liked by 2 people

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  12. berniebell1955's avatar berniebell1955 says:
    2025-03-27 at 13:31

    Reply to Cheryl Batavia…….. I, too, thought that this should give cause for concern but she was fine – just as full of Ooooph as ever – didn’t cause any pause in her drinking, at all!

    I was in my mid-30’s at the time, and the two lassies I mention were in their late teens. I was known as ‘Old Foss’ – affectionate abbreviation of fossil!

    At one time, the same lass was working in a Warehouse, when a big box of Pampers (nappies) fell on her head. She was injured enough to get compensation, but not long-term injured. She was, however, from then on known as shit-head among her chums! She’s just one of those people that….things happen to.

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  13. Cheryl Batavia's avatar Cheryl Batavia says:
    2025-03-27 at 22:12

    Thanks, Bernie, for the interesting story. When I was young, though not an addict, I engaged in some reckless behavior, and I was also fine. Some others were not so lucky. All of life’s experiences teach us something and are writing material.

    Liked by 1 person

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  14. rabirius's avatar rabirius says:
    2025-03-28 at 07:46

    Great work!

    Liked by 1 person

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  15. ivor20's avatar ivor20 says:
    2025-03-28 at 20:14

    Tall daffodils hide the small truths …

    Liked by 1 person

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  16. Dawn Pisturino's avatar Dawn Pisturino says:
    2025-04-04 at 11:10

    What a great poem!

    Liked by 1 person

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  17. Chuckster's avatar Chuckster says:
    2025-04-12 at 09:41

    Far Out! 🏄‍♂️🎶

    Liked by 1 person

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