jdubqca

poetry by j matthew waters

10 Jan 2023

the dejected cowboy


the doc told him he had trigger finger

I’m not surprised the cowboy replied
I’ve never been much of a patient fellow

yes of course that is quite evident
the doc responded
you were more than likely born
with this debilitating condition

having been given limited options
the dejected cowboy
collected his things
his pearl-handled pistols
safe inside their holsters
a single silver bullet
buttoned inside his shirt pocket





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , | Leave a comment
09 Jan 2023

new moon


if we’re lucky
we’ll see the moon
rise along with the sun
any day now
dismissing any worries
it was blown
to pieces
by a barrage
of nuclear warheads





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

Posted in Micropoetry, Poetry, War Poems and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
08 Jan 2023

coming into focus


there is some life left
in the frozen woods
I found it by accident
no doubt beneath
where owls once ruled
in their wise-old ways

along the way I spotted
the dying & the dead
collected them in my
photographic memory
like non-fungible tokens
one click at a time

I was told I don’t
belong here anymore
that it wasn’t my time
the wind & ice crystals
encouraging me to go back
before it was too late





coming into focus


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

Posted in Nature, Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
07 Jan 2023
2 Comments

starting from scratch


if I were to start from scratch
I wouldn’t even know my mother

I would be a microbe
either in someone’s gut
or on the ocean floor
a mere figment
of an imagination
I can’t begin to comprehend

if I were to be reborn
what are the chances
I’d be back in the same womb
the one that nourished me
the first & last time
before exploding into this world





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , ,
06 Jan 2023

american [teenage] idol

I never thought a career as a musician was possible
— Billie Eilish

she’s just a person born of this century
unable to describe herself with words

the songs come from out of nowhere
as if channeled by a diva born ages ago

being misunderstood is an understatement
the higher notes no longer intimidating

the synergy of courage & independence
brings forth new life and countless encores

once the lights fade & the curtain is drawn
she retreats to a world she barely knows





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
05 Jan 2023

Getting out of Dodge


I’ve heard he’s enjoying the zen now
relaxing & a regular on youtube tv
working on a list
—can you even begin to guess
vintage this & brand new that
something in store another delivered
anything worthy as a distraction
misdirecting or misleading
sorting out fact from fiction
—inevitably
coming to terms with the reality
of the great escape





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , | Leave a comment
04 Jan 2023
3 Comments

heavy glow


I’ve been on holiday
for what seems
like nearly a decade
bypassing pandemics
and pandering politicians
—living in a bubble (as they say)
enjoying a life of leisure

my doctor says I’m gonna die
any day now
mainly because I neglected
those who need me most
whether third world children
or children of my own

how she found me
is a nugget of information
that will eventually find itself
on the information superhighway
—like a secret ingredient
to the finest dish
exposed for all to see

there’s a light at the end of the hall
I keep telling myself
I’m not going there
—even though I know the ride’s over
I turn the other way
diving headlong out the window
as if knowing exactly
what I’m doing





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , ,
03 Jan 2023
4 Comments

dying in the dead of winter


one by one they die off
and every spring
they come back to life

they die off in threes
one-two-three
like a nursery rhyme

sometimes
all of them on the same day
other times over three days
four or five days
maybe as many as seven

we bury them
& then we move on
counting the days
the weeks
the months
the years

did you see where
she died on the third day
I was asked

yes I answered
& I am certain she will return
soon after the winter solstice
or the one after that

silence ensued
along with a smile
& a nod





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

Posted in Nature, Poetry and tagged , ,
02 Jan 2023
2 Comments

the fading protagonist


I am the last of a dying breed
how many times have you heard such a thing
my irish-backed whiteness
and lack of an accent [due to my
american upbringing]
couldn’t make me any more
plain-janier

inkless & pierceless & without
nary a conviction
I look & sound exactly as expected
 —predictably beaten

            I say do not interview me
I’ve nothing interesting to add to the
conversation

I like to talk about all the times
I’ve almost died
but nobody wants to hear those
cat stories anymore
if only they had changed over the years
embellished & unbelievably heroic
perhaps they could have
transitioned into lives of their own

instead I’m the interviewer
& the interviewee
a super long list of imperious questions
going unanswered
hour after hour after hour





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

Posted in Animals, Poetry and tagged , , , ,
01 Jan 2023

Reinfield


It’s no wonder
how tired I became
having consumed
Stoker’s ‘Dracula’
inside twenty-four hours

With the assistance
of [mainly] valium
but other various uppers
& downers
I found myself
in the midst of it all
delving inside
major & minor characters
as if I never existed

All alone along
the way
I became immobilized
obsessed with insects
and all things
hematology

having become paralyzed
somehow the pages
continued to turn
—in the end
I walked on air
possibly through walls





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
31 Dec 2022

Emily


      —dedicated to my paternal grandmother who I never met

None of this makes sense
we are all machines
with parts that wear out

Although on a higher level
there is more to the mechanisms
than meets the eye

Art will not save the planet
but it may [theoretically]
outlive it
circulating in means
unimaginable

If Emily could hear you now
she would be a perfect
lady in waiting
no longer sickly
nor not wanting you around
but rather willing & able
to start all over again





december two thousand twenty-two
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
30 Dec 2022
2 Comments

the press conference


it’s widely known
there’s no time to lose
yet the urgency
in matters of great importance
seems to matter not
afterall

the reverberation
of inaction
rarely stands to reason
instead sucking up time
as if it’s of no
particular consequence

the sheriff
was quoted as saying
the murder case
would never go cold
simply because time was on
his side





december two thousand twenty-two
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , ,
29 Dec 2022
2 Comments

California kitchen


Sugar cubes
in round ceramic dish
—pinkish w/dark green leaves
domed lid on top
cherry red ball its handle

In the kitchen
the Hatter must be near
Triangular people drink tea—
    talk of Alice suggestively
passing the dish
from one
to the next

Outside the sunshine
enters the inside—
the chatter changing
of going Underground
—not to mention
all the Things
they’ll be taking with them
    here & beyond



december two thousand twenty-two
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , ,
28 Dec 2022

a life force stuck on idle


the pyramids of the cosmos
far too many light years away
to be seen by any
man-made eye

they’ve been replicated
right here on earth
a parallel reconciliation
understood by ancient egyptians
—the cosmic mystery of
interconnectedness

it takes more than mirror images
& wishful thinking
to conquer the stars
more than stepping in & out
of consciousness
on a sofa
talking to your shrink





december two thousand twenty-two
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
27 Dec 2022

fire in the attic


we’re back on the ground
having jumped out of
the little white aerocraft
at the break of dawn

at the same time
the sky was still falling
flaming rocks crashing
setting our very target on fire

we were unprepared
to reverse rappel
but that’s exactly what we did
outmaneuvering the fireballs
expertly escaping from hell





december two thousand twenty-two
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Aliens, In the City, Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
26 Dec 2022

emergency run


it’s christmastime & we’ve no tequila in the cupboard
this pointed out to me by someone who doesn’t live here

how can we play stop lights without tequila
what could possibly take its place
—red   —yellow   —green

the travelers & gatherers & unannounced guests
have since moved on their merry way
now that the blizzard has passed

what shall keep us warm tonight without the power
without the fire
or the stories or the liquor
what could possibly make us survive another night

I’ve always wanted snowskies & snowshoes
just in case we need to make an emergency run
helping others along the way
stranded & without a prayer to make it to safety

that is
until I arrive like a miracle out of the ice
like a saint bernard with a backpack full of spirits





december two thousand twenty-two
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Animals, Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment

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