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March 1, 2021

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en temps de peste

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Two Poems

  • April 16, 2020
  • 10:09 pm
  • New Orleans
according to you/ I am a shit friend/ In an apocalypse
josephbarker

Joseph Barker

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Going Viral in New Orleans

 

we’ve always been the best

at being           the worst

part of waking up

is sensing you 

may never again

 

return        to the world

we used to know      each other’s embrace

 

our bodies 

    held       so close

I tasted you       in the air

now seeped       stagnant

a city once drenched      in life

bringing new meaning

        to being      the hottest spot

an accolade      no one wanted

to go      viral in this way

 

 

I Needed The Distance

 

I would have stayed away

Even if they hadn’t told me to

Lock the doors

I welcomed you in

My emotional space

Unaware that your misery

Sought to make my company

The weight of your strife

A burden these shoulders

Can no longer carry

A world full of problems

And only yours seem to matter

Did you ever think

That maybe I’m not ok

Yet you will never ask

So now I use silence

As my weapon

Of self-preservation

But according to you

I am a shit friend

In an apocalypse

 

 


 

Joseph Barker
Joseph Barker is a poet, photographer, and visual artist from New Orleans, LA. For more of his work or for inquiries, find him on Twitter at @jpb_poetry.

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