unused wishes
and patches of blue
peek through wintry skies
floor lamp on low dim
exposing raindrops
suspended on frozen glass
solitary thoughts
packed heavily like snow
grow weary day by day
cursive writing
beautiful postcard scene
airmail stamp and brevity
february two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
I felt hungry and weak
having fallen asleep
for forty-five moons
never once was I asked
my name
long after awakening
this place is not like
the last
and I imagine so
for good reason
the world as I know it
changing before my eyes
february two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
there is art in the air
you can see it
smell it
feel it
you can breathe it in
and exhale with a complete
sense of satisfaction
there is a sense of security
that art brings
to the table
whether seen or heard
or simply vibrating
through the atmosphere
like a hundred billion molecules
play me a song with your fingers
painting surreal pictures
inside my head
making me younger
than I really am
and giving me the courage
to start all over again
february two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
I am not who you think I am
freely walking these city streets
eyes looking forward
unafraid to be noticed as some
outsider instigator
as one who should have been arrested
with all the other hooligans
from the other night
I tell you I don’t know any of them
and despite
your inherent prejudice
I remain remarkably comfortable
in my own skin
february two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
some birds are back but the temps
are well below zero
either they never got the memo
or they’ve come back early
for some unknown reason
I slowed down for a murder of crows
while taking the long way home
a hundred or so
cleaning up a spill of sorts near
the corn sweetener plant
once in my rearview
anxiously getting back at it
shifting gears past the hill
the music meets the sun
and the speeding locomotive
sounding off along the river
eagles circling high above
sparrows racing in my peripheral
nearly anything with wings
busily chasing dreams
february two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
She once told me no more lies
but that was a half-life ago
I’ve since forgotten
the illogic circumstance
leading to such a proclamation
Smoke and mirrors always adored her
changing little lies into white lines
appearing and disappearing just like that
leaving me with hands in pockets
stuck again paying the rent
Jane always left for no good reason
out looking for something
she’s yet been able to define
block party still a go a week from today
everyone expecting to see her there
february two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
Kudos to ‘Jane Says’ by Jane’s Addiction which I’d heard on the radio
on the drive home the night I wrote this poem.
I’ll have no part of this tragedy
handed down from one
actor to the next
lead role playing out vicariously
some saying posthumously
They keep prognosticating
that the winds are directionless
but anyone with a set of eyes
can tell they come and go
mostly from stage right
it’s a wonder everyone’s
not banging into one another
Each year the party seems to be
getting smaller and smaller
before you know it
it’ll be a one-man show
and then I’ll have no excuse
but to rise and clap above my head
february two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
what are we waiting for
to set the record straight
and make a concerted effort
to do what’s right
how can we not see
past our own imperfections
glaringly present
well before the common era
remarkably similar to today
we tell our children to live and learn
but fail to put them to the test
instead we invent new ways
to take control of everything imaginable
by whatever means necessary
and at any cost
february two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
I imagine it’s simpler than it seems
especially if you don’t have to
think about it for too long
it’s not the first I’ve tried
to make it all the way back
each time punctuated by chance
oh no not this time I would exclaim
hanging out along the shoreline
casting out a couple lines
who in the world would be
calling at this hour I’m inclined to say
suddenly wondering who if anyone
will remember that
february two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
you can feel it
it’s called momentum
and it seems to be feeding off of you
every so often I find myself
learning something new
like casus belli or two half hitches
and suddenly I feel your momentum
beginning to build all over again
like a locomotive
barreling through the night sky
its single beam headlamp
like a supermoon cutting through clouds
neither near nor far all at the same time
it’s past midnight
and the stillness of the air awakens me
not the lonely cry of the wild
not the single lamppost burning
february two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
it’s impossible to tell
that which ails me
you see I’ve been like this
for so long
I’m finally believing
there’s nothing wrong with me
there’s not a chance
this stays between you and me
and even if does
it doesn’t change a thing
we’ll always wonder
what it’s like to be normal
february two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
I saw what you did there
changing your spots into stripes
thinking nobody would notice
of course who am I to talk
having shed my skin so many moons ago
back when I was granted clemency
by the powers that be
seeing the world from new perspectives
I saw you going into the woods
and I was sure you’d never return
at least not in my lifetime
of course I followed you in
not as your weaponized protector
more like a casual observer
curious in witnessing
the mystery of divine intervention
I saw what I saw
the blind man said to the snake
the former having left his former self
february two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
I don’t necessarily need more space
au contraire I need less of it
needing to declutter my surroundings
including what’s inside my head
leaves me to ponder how in the world
one goes about deleting permanent records
très bizarre our french teacher at the
university used to declare in earnest
her collective gathering nodding in agreement
mesmerized by her beauty
and wonderful command of the language
way back when there was no such thing as space
everything was wide open and accessible
whether here on earth or far beyond the clouds
whether miles underground or on the high seas
nothing was capable of holding us back
but today oh today how everything has changed
and I find myself investigating all the cracks
I once took for granted or never noticed
voluntarily falling to my hands and knees
calling out for anyone who may have fallen through
asking repeatedly parlez-vous anglais
february two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
they told me I had no father
that my mother never married
and died giving birth
forever separating me from the truth
what choice did I have
but to break the chains of a past
that never existed
to escape quietly from my inner self
at a very early age I accepted
my free and solitary life
preaching and practicing forgiveness
and believing without a doubt
one day we would lie down together
february two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
they think they know me all too well
much like I pretend to know myself
by day flying as high as a kite
string eventually cut by choice
or perhaps let go by accident
impossible to say whether or if
I’ll ever be grounded again
by the time midnight arrives
I‘ve reached the outer frequencies
collecting more than bits and pieces
discovering new ways to smuggle
some back to the home port
just in case I’m included
on their next wayfaring adventure
february two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
hands behind my back
how many fingers
how many coins
can you guess
and guess again
read my mind
what am I thinking
a number
a word
or just pie in the sky
an alternative universe
stuffed inside my fist
quietly radiating
waiting for you to open
february two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
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