jdubqca

poetry by j matthew waters

Archive for the category “Poetry”

13 May 2023

facing the edge


I pull to the side of the road
mainly out of curiosity

how am I to move
the injured marmot
to the side of the road

I don’t get out of the car
instead I look up at the sky
its eyes burning like death

I look away
as if losing a staring contest
with the sun

a vehicle drives by
and then another and another
a whole host of them
like well-equipped refugees

I take my cue from the marmot
[which has seemed to move on]
and proceed
against the grain





may two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserve

Posted in Animals, Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
12 May 2023

funk & wagnalls’ guide to poetry


experimenting w/punctuation
inside free verse poetry
inconsequential endeavors
having no easy answers
neither on this page
nor the next

some poets seem to have it
all figured out
juking & jiving
ducking & hiding
replacing one rhyme w/another
whether inside or out

there’s not much to think about
when your mind is going
twenty-four eleven
racing & replacing
long dashes & exclamation points
w/single solitary spaces





may two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserve

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
11 May 2023
2 Comments

scrolling thru negatives


the proverbial power nap
do I awaken from death
yet again
or will this be
the last encore
I’ll ever perform

when I fell off the stage
they attempted
to resuscitate me
but it was too little too late
my vital signs
digressing
into a black hole

professionals
& amateurs alike
review their camera rolls
from various angles
saying my god
he stood right before me
& now like the wind
suddenly nondescript





may two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserve

Posted in Poetry and tagged , ,
10 May 2023
1 Comment

outliving scarce resources


most care little
about running out of space
there’ll always be a patch
to plant pumpkins they say
always a spot in the wilderness
to build a log cabin

the bigger problem
most everyone seems to agree
is about running of time
at least living on this planet
with its natural resources
dwindling by the minute





may two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Nature, Poetry and tagged , , , ,
09 May 2023

picking & choosing


they were waiting to have a child
until they could afford one
an unlikely proposition
especially during a recession

he would tell stories about being
the only child
while she lamented
of being the youngest of the litter

childhood memories
didn’t appear to have any bearing
with their recent decision-making
or lack thereof

when spring arrived they planted
a grafted apple tree
special-ordered from the nursery
the kind with four varieties

months later the economy improved
the apples ripe for picking
each one given a name
alternating between boy & girl





may two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
08 May 2023
2 Comments

moonless night


I’m uncomfortable in my bed
tossing & turning
as if in a grave
roots & stones & dirt taking hold
preventing me
from rising to the surface
from sleepwalking
to the north window
slinging it wide open
from floating across the room
like dracula
flinging open
the south window as well
a cool breezeway
quickly ensuing
allowing me to settle back in position
and dream peacefully
with an all night rain





may two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , ,
07 May 2023

rescue efforts


the song is barely heard
but it’s there
buried beneath the rubble

the children need to hear it
on their hands & knees
clawing & digging with their fingers

there I can hear the song again
one of them says
it’s like a whisper but it’s there
and the others agree
digging even faster now
saying yes we can hear it too

adults with shovels
frantically plunge & pull the blade
throwing the contents
past their shoulder
the light of day passing through
the song of hope growing stronger
with each & every effort





may two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
06 May 2023
3 Comments

no act of contrition


I took the liberty of picking out
some of your words
rearranged them to my liking
and sold them as my own

some might call it an act of stealing
but much like cheating
it never really happened
unless you got caught

mind you this is not an admission
especially since I never
mentioned it to anybody
but if someone claims otherwise
well that would be a lie





may two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , ,
05 May 2023

road tripping in the republic


the preparations are endless at some point
you say to yourself what the hell am I doing

but you go on anyway
first the passport and then the online shopping

to places like amazon to find that knockoff wallet
the one you carry around your neck

keeping your valuables out of sight
credit cards & euros & photos of your people

back home you’re afraid someone has stolen
the only identities you’ve ever known

meanwhile you are transported across the island
the one your ancestors came from

before arriving you used duolingo to learn the language
but then decided fuck it most of them know english

I bought a new iphone to take better pictures
in case I come across the whole lot of them

the mooneys and the connellys
tipping ales with the doyles in a tipperary tavern





may two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
04 May 2023
4 Comments

Nearing the finish line


Nobody knows how it ends
which is probably the beauty
(or ugliness) of it all

When Cash covered Reznor
it reached a broader audience
doubling down on the reminder
none of us are here to stay

After the tulips & daffodils
& bleeding hearts die off
other colors are eager to replace them
& like clockwork
that’s exactly what transpires

I was looking out the bay window
one super windy morning
I spotted you across the street
(as plain as day)
walking your dog & looking my way
— I waved back nonchalantly
as if it were yesterday





may two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , ,
03 May 2023
5 Comments

on loneliness


this thing called loneliness
trending in the real
and virtual world
striking unsuspectingly
like a snake in the grass

it’s no wonder
mothers are worried
children pleading to stay home
loneliness the new norm
versus learning in school





may two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , ,
02 May 2023

coming & going as they please


something touched my shoulder
perhaps I had been dozing off
in & out of a dream

my eyes flickered
but it was too dark to see
instead heard metallic wind chimes
as if they had just been rewound

whoever was responsible
[for the touching and/or rewinding]
did not show themselves
in fact I started to believe they had minimized themselves
having fled into the woods behind the garden

it was cold out but plenty bright
and when I opened the blinds
the light was blinding
and for a brief moment I thought I saw them

I should have known not to open the blinds
at least not without an approving birdcall
something that had been missing
since before my self-induced slumber

I’m stuck
where I’ve been stuck
for what seems like a fortnight now
this rectangular room seemingly self-sustaining
three sides made of glass
the other w/a singular door

slightly ajar
floral & fauna
completely silent
looking in from the outside





may two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Animals, Birds, Dreams, Nature, Poetry and tagged , , | Leave a comment
01 May 2023
5 Comments

movie night


I could hear them in the kitchen
three little mice having just learned
how to make popcorn

I was rocking in the parlor
cleaning my gun & sharpening
my whittling knife
catching bits & pieces of their
unintelligible conversation

when the timer went off
I set down my block of wood
and proceeded to the kitchen
the smell of butter & salt & spilt beer
dominating my senses

cracking the basement door
all I heard were the opening credits
to walt disney’s cinderella





may two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Animals, Poetry and tagged , , ,
30 Apr 2023
3 Comments

my first near death experience


I may have been nineteen
maybe twenty
when I nearly died
in my sleep
in my bed
sometime past midnight

below my bunk bed
an old chair smoldered
from a cigarette ash
slowly filling the room
with smoke

who awoke me
I’ll never know
but I was commanded
to wake up
as if from a dream
wake up you fool
lest you should die

when I escaped
the death chamber
the other residents
of the boarding house
quickly came back to life as well
hauling the chair away
meant for my demise





april two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Dreams, Poetry and tagged , , , ,
29 Apr 2023
4 Comments

a pluperfect kind of past


i.

she doesn’t remember me
not the old rock & roll songs
we used to danced to
taking cocaine breaks
back in the dressing room

ii.

I’m nearly her age
but she looks twice mine
at least from my perspective
— that irreversibility of time

iii.

I hear people saying
when did I get old darling
and they say baby
you’ve been timeless
since the day you were born





april two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in History, Poetry and tagged , , ,
28 Apr 2023
5 Comments

the orphan parade


we knew the woods as well
as any wild animal
and they knew us
just the same

we tended to keep
to the minor trails
rifle & canteen strapped
on either shoulder

we were not at war
but a silent opposition
seemed to be surveilling
our movements

over time we learned
to scramble our signals
traversing in groups of three
or two or one

intercepted messages
labeled us as
the orphan parade
guardians of the trees

day by day we evolved
our mission never changing
constant orders from above
by way of telepathy





april two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Animals, Poetry and tagged , , , ,

Post Navigation

← Older Entries
Newer Entries →
%d bloggers like this: