jdubqca

poetry by j matthew waters

paper tigers

once the children moved out
demons moved in disguised
as paper tigers roaming
from room to room

their emerald eyes shined
from the darkest corners
of the night reminding me
of a love I once had

I fed them sad stories
in exchange for my life
but their promises of light
I could not fathom

I asked them kindly to leave
my world but they curled
where the winter sun
shined through glass

in the spring I found strength
to unfold and reshape
keeping the demons at bay
as paper angels hanging

april two thousand thirteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged angels, demons, origami, poem, Poetry, strength, tigers

23 thoughts on “paper tigers”

Folio and Ink on April 13, 2013 at 12:32 pm said:

While I am moved by most of your work, this one just haunts me. It resonates and reverberates. Truly, like still waters. The imagery and feeling conjures magic.

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- j matthew waters on April 13, 2013 at 12:36 pm said:
  
  Thank you so much, J. A. I’m thrilled knowing this piece speaks to you.
  
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LadyBlueRose's Thoughts Into Words on April 13, 2013 at 10:13 pm said:

Haunting is a very good description…
I am slowly making peace with my demons…
Take Care…
)0(
ladyblue

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- j matthew waters on April 13, 2013 at 10:16 pm said:
  
  sometimes easier said than done – i wish you the best enjoying the rest of your life 😉
  
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  - LadyBlueRose's Thoughts Into Words on April 13, 2013 at 10:17 pm said:
    
    yes it is, but if you say it fast it catches the wind LOLs..
    Thank you….
    )0(
  - j matthew waters on April 13, 2013 at 10:20 pm said:
    
    i love riding the wind – thank you once again
lly1205 on April 13, 2013 at 11:01 pm said:

I just love the image of paper tigers! Can I ask what inspired you here?

Lily

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- j matthew waters on April 13, 2013 at 11:12 pm said:
  
  i have four children – i love them more than they know. they are my inspiration. thank you for asking lily.
  
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  - lly1205 on April 13, 2013 at 11:14 pm said:
    
    That’s such a lovely source of inspiration!
wifsie on April 26, 2013 at 5:58 am said:

In the end the monsters are under the bed because we let them hide there. The paper tiger is a great analogy. It’s powerful only if we give it the power. Our choice. Thanks for liking my post, btw. So nice to read you here.

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- j matthew waters on April 26, 2013 at 6:42 am said:
  
  Thank you so much for stopping by, Wifsie!
  
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lscotthoughts on May 1, 2013 at 5:33 pm said:

I’m in agreement with your other comments in that this one is also hauntingly beautiful and I loved the paper tiger imagery…

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- j matthew waters on May 1, 2013 at 6:23 pm said:
  
  Thank you so much….
  
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srikumaranmenon on May 3, 2013 at 11:55 pm said:

Beautiful….

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- j matthew waters on May 3, 2013 at 11:55 pm said:
  
  thank you very much
  
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pleisbilongtumi on May 5, 2013 at 11:31 pm said:

Oh,…. I had taken a deep breath ! sounds so hideous to me. Lovely !

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- j matthew waters on May 6, 2013 at 10:07 pm said:
  
  Thank you so much.
  
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Rose Red on April 22, 2015 at 6:37 am said:

Stunning

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- j matthew waters on April 22, 2015 at 8:17 am said:
  
  Thank you very much – you’ll find this one in ‘101 Chances’
  
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  - Rose Red on April 22, 2015 at 8:57 am said:
    
    Yes I was happy to read it again. The audio added so much to the poem
denise0904 on January 16, 2017 at 12:30 am said:

you sounded scared when you recited this made a good effect. wonderful haunting poem.

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- j matthew waters on January 16, 2017 at 5:21 am said:
  
  thank you very much – this one is one of my all-time favorites
  
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  - denise0904 on January 16, 2017 at 5:23 am said:
    
    it might well become one of mine

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