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Best Poems Written by James Barlow

Below are the all-time best James Barlow poems as chosen by PoetrySoup members

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Uncivil War by Jim Barlow

Leaves flap in the breeze 
From the tops of the trees 
’Round the battlefield that 
Rests just below. 

Hand to hand 
Sun to sun 
We pass on the notion 
That civility in war has never been done. 

Brothers in arms, 
Brothers in harm. 
Slaves to graves, 
Anger in waves. 

People in chains, 
Brandishing pains. 
Blue versus Gray, 
As families pray. 

Hand in hand 
Gun to gun
We retain the notion 
That civility in war has never been done. 

Blue takes Gray 
North wins the day 
Gun is aimed 
A President claimed. 

“Death to tyrants” 
Words of violence 
A man of flaws 
Brought down by law. 

Man to man 
Son to son 
We re-teach the notion 
That civility in war has never been done. 

A nation cry 
A last train ride 
Put out the fires. 
Rebuild the spires.

What God hath blessed 
Man has messed 
Men finally freed 
Lessons learned, time to heed. 

Flags fly in the breeze 
Surrounded by trees 
With a thousand 
White crosses below. 

Man to man 
One by one 
May we learn the lesson, 
That no war has ever, truly, been won.

Copyright © James Barlow | Year Posted 2024



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Moon by Jim Barlow

Meaningless thoughts drift slowly across my mind
Surrounded by bright gray and ebony sky.
Magnificent desolation envelopes me.

No perceived horizon,
All is calm, devoid of 
Air, wind, and rain.

I breathe and take in
The stark beauty of a pristine 
Celestial world.
Undisturbed and powdered beneath my feet
The cratered landscape reminds me
That I am an intruder,
In a realm unfamiliar
But majestically beautiful.

Magnificently barren orb,
Glowing, mysterious
Forever our neighbor
Our stoic satellite,
The Moon.

Copyright © James Barlow | Year Posted 2024

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Redemption by Jim Barlow

Pensive is the mind
In the vacuum of time
When suddenly it hit us.
That four of a kind 
Can look sublime
But all it does is collect dust.

You can never find
The lemon or the lime
When all at once it bit us
The razor shined
 on the Mercury dime
We’re down, and all around are against us.

You’re falling behind
Begin the climb
It’s steep but don’t let it trip us
Let these words remind,
Remember this rhyme,
Let your heart and soul just lead us.

We were once blind
Til God took our crime
Never was He against us 
We seek and we find
We crawl through the grime
Then redemption is there to receive us.

Copyright © James Barlow | Year Posted 2025


Book: Reflection on the Important Things