jdubqca

poetry by j matthew waters

31 Jan 2024

on finding a feather of a mourning dove


what am I to solve
before leaving this place
once incapable of refusing
an unwanted invitation
yet this is where I stand
if only temporarily
asking my own questions
to a mind that has seen
many great & terrible things

these possessions of mine
why do they grow
and why am I unable
to rid of them
yet perfectly adept at burying
hand-picked memories
having once fueled me
day by day
only to haunt me by night

but what of the physical
versus the mental
are they really that far apart
but rather intertwined
in such a way
I’ll never fully understand
the connection
—that is as long as I wander
upon rock & water





january two thousand twenty-four
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Birds, Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
30 Jan 2024
2 Comments

inside job


white collar heist
a performing artist
finding vulnerabilities
cracks in walls
a chink in the armor
picking off assets on the net
cash & coins & tokens
slipped into stealth wallets
—they said it had to have been an inside job
had to have been
an inside job





january two thousand twenty-four
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Micropoetry, Poetry and tagged , , ,
29 Jan 2024

telepathy


do you know what I’m thinking
she asked me out of the blue
her voice as distinct
as I had remembered
in god knows how many years

her words were inside my head
as I sat outside a corner cafe
deviceless on a sunny morning
the traffic light but loud
pigeons plentiful & pecking away

I turned to face my right
& then my left & backwards
my hands on the top rail of the chair
fooling myself that she could be within earshot
as opposed to eternally lost
in a sea of consciousness





january two thousand twenty-four
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in In the City, Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
28 Jan 2024
3 Comments

game programmer


we were watching cartoons
in the dungeon when the doorbell rang

considering the volume on the television
it was surprising the sound even reached us

suddenly there was complete silence
except for half a dozen beating hearts

the shadows on the walls didn’t make a move
in fact they seemed to be shrinking

we weren’t supposed to be there
and there wasn’t a single adult around

for some strange reason Timmy decided
to see who was at the door

we heard every single creak of the stairs
as he ascended to the main floor

we heard his steps across the floor
stopping at the foyer

and from that point on
we never heard from Timmy again





january two thousand twenty-four
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , ,
27 Jan 2024

lucky to be alive


eyes open
unsure what day it is
shouldn’t take long to solve
what with living in the digital age

late January
sun unseen for days
hijacked by rising temperatures
having chased away the polar vortex

a mad dash
or maybe a marathon
depends who survived the night
counting heads at the breakfast table

early March
the world still at war
looking out the kitchen window
kids play dodgeball in an old minefield





january two thousand twenty-four
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry, War Poems and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
26 Jan 2024

ninety-seven light years away


the river is bound to flood again
it’s only a matter of time

and what of the newly discovered exoplanet
blue & white and twice the size of earth

don’t you suppose the rivers flood there

once the levee breaks all hell will break loose
and people will ask yet again
why do we build so close to the water

what is our fascination with risk & reward

I can’t imagine life would be much different
once we colonize the watery place





january two thousand twenty-four
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , , | Leave a comment
25 Jan 2024

January fog


It’s sixty-thirty
and the deer sauntering down the street
have gotten the dogs agitated
so much so that their anxiety
& their owners’ displeasure
can be heard from the outside

It is winter still
and the night is calm
the air thick from the rising temperatures
giving both the deer & the dogs
the confidence they need
to do as they please





january two thousand twenty-four
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Animals, In the City, Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
24 Jan 2024
8 Comments

his schizophrenia girl


he’s a photographer & AI artist
roaming the city streets
w/his girl by his side
she likes to walk along the pier
each visit like witnessing the ocean
for the very first time

she’s an artist herself
and a doctor & a dreamer
a purple flower & self-made author
concocting stories she’s swears
are as real as the waves
splashing before her eyes

he takes her by the hand
strolling back toward the plaza
asking her what will it be today
anything she responds
as long as he’s present
the only constant in her mind





january two thousand twenty-four
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in In the City, Poetry and tagged , , ,
23 Jan 2024

building walls


suppressing your expressions
exactly beginning when
I can only fathom
most likely building walls
long before anyone’s best guess

perhaps the only way to get inside
is from above
where there is no roof
and where there is no ceiling
somewhere a flickering light
in need of a little kindling





january two thousand twenty-four
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
22 Jan 2024
2 Comments

a small matter of life & death


little black spider
races across the oak floor
suddenly stops
for no apparent reason

is he out of breath
and simply needs to rest
or has he forgotten
his desired destination
now recalculating a new route

from where I sit I am
less than two steps
away from the little fellow
a single question
repeating in my mind
the obvious answer
lying in my compassion for life





january two thousand twenty-four
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Animals, Poetry and tagged , , ,
21 Jan 2024
4 Comments

preternatural


autumn came & went hastily
chasing shadow-like ghosts
into the night
retreating into the dead of winter

once underground
the air became tolerable
inner workings quietly expanding
like a spiderweb in the rafters

the first signs of spring
would arrive later than usual
the missiles & the drones
silencing bird calls
canceling once promising rains





january two thousand twenty-four
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry, War Poems and tagged , , ,
20 Jan 2024
2 Comments

two-thirty in the afternoon


death is in the next room
waiting to be called
deleting apps rarely used
on the smartphone

meanwhile in the family room
everyone is alive & well
including the eldest
recently revived
by an emergency room doctor

back in the next room
death stands at the bay window
counting crows gathering atop rooftops
watching the waning crescent
descending past the white pines





january two thousand twenty-four
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Birds, Poetry and tagged , , ,
19 Jan 2024

rock stars in baseball diamonds


I always thought twinkle twinkle little star
was a song about baseball
—the diamond in the sky
a destination where former greats would play
after moving on from their game

once graduating from little league
my thought process evolved into imagining
how the field was expanding
the players including all the young rock stars
who kept dying w/some regularity
right in the prime of their lives





january two thousand twenty-four
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Baseball, Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
18 Jan 2024

the spirit flickers with defiance


this space is my last resort
where sadness meets insanity
for no particular reason

I am like a donkey dying
incapable of braying or dreaming
of greener pastures

the gods are deciding
if enough is enough
a simple majority sending me
out to space to view the earth
from afar before exploding
before my very eyes

they don’t say what will happen next
so I actively sit here in this space
inventing my own conclusions





january two thousand twenty-four
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
17 Jan 2024

spring training


I planted some seeds
between the car house
and the neighbor next door
a place with little traffic
where the sun is hard pressed
to zero in on
on a partly cloudy day

I imagine a year from now
traffic will pick up
between the car house
and the neighbor next door
mainly due to how the sun
is attracted to her own
newly colorful creations





january two thousand twenty-four
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Nature, Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
16 Jan 2024

the misinformants


Peace cannot be kept by force; it can only be achieved by understanding.
Albert Einstein

the information age
hasn’t enlightened the collective mind
having changed little what transpires
on a spinning silver-blue jewel

birds & bees carry on with their
multitude of purposes
actors performing on stage &
the silver screen
wild horses yet incapable
of dragging mick jagger away

rather it may be accelerating
the spread of hatred & contempt
fueled by talking fools
who feed the masses their very own
version of fire & brimstone





january two thousand twenty-four
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in History, Poetry, War Poems and tagged , , , | Leave a comment

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