jdubqca

poetry by j matthew waters

26 Oct 2023
2 Comments

aftermath


these buildings don’t belong here
sooner or later they will implode
either by an earthquake
or sworn enemy
it matters not

people will die
it’s an inevitability
no matter the property
no matter the where or the when
it will first come as a dream

and then it will be a reality
streamed online via satellite
archived to be revisited on demand
long after the world
has become a quieter place





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

Posted in Dreams, Poetry, War Poems and tagged , , ,
25 Oct 2023

disappearing act


it’s food day
so I call in sick and grab
my rod & reel
walk the five point five miles
to the trout stream

in my pockets
I carry [among other things]
single-serving packets
of mayonnaise & pickle relish
—a couple of hot dog buns
and a swiss army knife

in the tackle box
I have fake worms
and a fake license
red & white bobbers
rainbow spinners & a blue stringer
[among many other things]

at work it’s nearly breaktime
—suddenly one of the bobbers
disappears below the surface





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

Posted in Fishing, Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
24 Oct 2023

where are our human rights


living & dying in the moment
ongoing battles are fought
within & without
explosions displacing
deluges tempering
matters of the heart
tearing at the mind

there is no place to hide
when living & dying
for today
when intentions
& inevitabilities collide
inside a world of good & evil
neither seeming to prevail





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

Posted in Poetry, War Poems and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
23 Oct 2023

waiting at the station


there is no test at the end
only a brief darkness
followed by a reality that cannot
be explained using words
uttered by mere mortals
as if witnessing the birth of a child
for the very first time
—only this time the child is you





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

Posted in Micropoetry, Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
22 Oct 2023

painting lesson


she told me to make the skies bluer
and the setting sun orangier

I told her I would have to start all over

no you don’t she said
here let me show you

and she took over the canvas
the brushes & the paints
proceeded to turn my mediocre
landscape of sea & sun & clouds
into something beautifully alien





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
21 Oct 2023

the energy without


the spirit guides are calling me
but I am unconcerned
—distractions & distrust
embedded in my psyche
pushing me outward (violently)

instead of pulling myself
(effortlessly) inward
I am projected into the mix
multimedia having a blast
playing head games

ancestors on the outside
unable to look in
the single door locked
and boarded in
—every window just the same





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
20 Oct 2023

the dying winds of war


who do you love
when you are alone at sea
one sail & one body
—pieces of teak & cedar

space is like water
clusters of stars your next
destination
one wave after another

soon peace will be restored
—like never before
celebrations will erupt
throughout the lands

from the sea you make out
millions of candles
assembled along the shoreline
the dying winds of war
making them flicker





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

Posted in Poetry, War Poems and tagged , , , , | Leave a comment
19 Oct 2023
4 Comments

without a trace


where she went
I could not say
having disappeared
once my heart
went missing

alone on foot
I wander city streets
her reflection
in puddles
& storefront windows

street lamps give me
little to no solace
their brilliance
but a reminder
of her smile





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

Posted in In the City, Poetry and tagged , , ,
18 Oct 2023

ghost town revival


how many times
had it been bombed & rebuilt
—what was so special
about this place
that even their ghosts
[time & again]
would rise to the occasion
refusing to be launched
like a rocket into the sky
well beyond the ether





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

Posted in Micropoetry, Poetry, War Poems and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
17 Oct 2023

the ceasefire


it is peaceful
inside the war room
mainly due to the lack
of any military personnel

in front of the south window
a betta swims
in a heated fish bowl
while on the outside sill
a juvenile raven peers in





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

Posted in Birds, Micropoetry, Poetry, War Poems and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
16 Oct 2023
4 Comments

october baseball


it’s mid october
& they’re still playing baseball
whether streaming online
or at triple play park
where they added a fourth diamond
two seasons ago

the players seen on devices
are real grown men
getting paid for what they do
in front of tens of thousands
while all the others
are simply boys & girls
running the bags on a
saturday morning

it’s getting colder outside
but that’s not stopping any of them
from donning their unis
& playing their hearts out
long before the first snowfall





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

Posted in Baseball, In the City, Poetry and tagged , , ,
15 Oct 2023
2 Comments

working for the DEA


purple tiger
smuggled in from
the southwest border

we were runners
we were kids
never paid by the hour

supposed to be home by six
but that was a moving target
—mama didn’t mind
not as long as they keep paying

social worker
stops by every ten days
making sure she’s still clean





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , ,
14 Oct 2023

the war within


rumor has it
they’re blowing
everything up
one block at a time

nobody believes it though
claiming they don’t
have the resources
—that it’s all talk

the curtain
slightly adjusted
one eye peers out the window
shadowy figures
darting from door to door
checking the locks
& leaving pamphlets

for now the neighborhood
is safe
but has never
been any scarier





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

Posted in In the City, Poetry, War Poems and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
13 Oct 2023
1 Comment

saturday morning


dead bird at the front doorstep
—a juvenile house wren

the cat’s at the back door
clawing at the weather stripping
as if it’s a sheet of rock

there’s a mess to be cleaned
[well below my feet]
either in the laundry room
or the opium den

door shuts
& I tell myself
the bird is probably just stunned

in the living room
my dead mother is reading a thriller
the rocking chair slightly
rocking

to give her more light
I throw open the curtains





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

Posted in Birds, Poetry and tagged , , , , ,
12 Oct 2023

bukowski’s cat


I’ll pick out the runt
you can always tell which one
—you just pick ‘em up by the neck

I’ll make him tough I will
kick him around a bit
make him stay out all night long
just like me

it’s not like I’ve never
had one before
haven’t kicked one out of the house
haven’t given ‘em a few bucks
and told ‘em to get lost

but this one—
there’s something different
about this one

and so you let him stay
for a little while
as long as he doesn’t cost you much





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

Posted in Animals, Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
11 Oct 2023
3 Comments

counting UFOs


we were relaxing in the future
sitting on the edge of a pier
our legs dangling above the waves
motioning toward us
like clockwork

it reminded us of an ocean
but wondered
what the locals call it
curious whether or not
they name their bodies of water

soon the second sun would rise





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

Posted in Aliens, Dreams, Micropoetry, Poetry and tagged , , ,

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