jdubqca

poetry by j matthew waters

20 Dec 2021
5 Comments

an army of caterpillars


there’s not much room for error
said the butterfly to her queen

in the parlor the joker scratched
all the lotto tickets to no avail
then checked himself into the clink

the broken-hearted jack
kept mostly to himself
while the other three preferred
to spend their time at the firehouse
enjoying a few ales and playing
euchre or pinochle
joking about the king of spades
who put himself in charge of training
an army of caterpillars



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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , ,
19 Dec 2021

the dream interpreter


every time I come to some sort of conclusion
the next riddle presents itself
and I am forced yet again to deal with
this thing called life

when the next riddle presents itself
I tend to sleep in
using my dreams to my advantage
writing them down in fits & starts
and taping them to the wall
pacing back & forth
sometimes a forefinger
placed on my lower lip
other times with hands on hips

not everything is solvable
at least not in this lifetime
where dungeons & flying dragons
plastered on tear-stained walls
are as real as death itself





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

Posted in Dreams, Poetry and tagged , , | Leave a comment
18 Dec 2021

Deputized


I took this job with the FBI
or the CIA
depending on the time of day

I was fresh out of college
and the credentials they gave me
were pockmarked
on my cheeks

It came to the point
where my friends confessed
they could see me
from a mile away
but couldn’t quite make out
who I was

As for my part
it wasn’t hard getting them to talk
about ice cream & conspiracies
after all
I had been taught to read
between the lines





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , | Leave a comment
17 Dec 2021
2 Comments

toying with infinity


a change of scenery
isn’t that what it’s all about
four or five seasons
rotating in & out of your life
commingling &
at times digressing
fast-forwarding supersonically
daydreaming & transcribing
without actually going
anywhere in particular





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

Posted in Dreams, Micropoetry, Poetry and tagged , ,
16 Dec 2021
2 Comments

the messenger’s offspring


they wore shoes with wings
these golden innocents
as mystical as they are mythical
earthbound & heaven sent for
reasons unknown
bringing joy to a few
and comfort to the many

time doesn’t seem to matter
once you are included
in their world
one in which the only mystery
is how their existence
ever came into play





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , ,
15 Dec 2021

repent & be saved


people are amassing at the river
from all quadrants of the city

blood has been shed
for far too long
& local organizers who go by the motto
‘enough is enough’
have been picking up speed of late

just when the tipping point appeared
to have been reached
ordained & lay ministers
could be found twenty-four seven
wading in the shallow waters
baptizing those who wish to repent





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

Posted in Dogma, In the City, Poetry and tagged , , | Leave a comment
14 Dec 2021
2 Comments

the fatality of one


I had this idea in my head
and I had to repeat it over & over again
so I wouldn’t lose it
and then someone died
on the highway
and I was there
to stand witness
waited until the ambulance
left with the body
making me realize the original idea
had gone away with the lights

there was a time when we
were inseparable
how easy it was to get things done
inspiration set on autopilot
creations unfolding
one after the other
long before that fatal crash
before the forces
that are always at work
decided tonight would be the night
and tomorrow would be no more





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , ,
13 Dec 2021

counting down the days


I have reached a new beginning
and fear I’ve become the lesser of two evils

like a retired knight I’ve turned in my mace
and my sword and my suit of armor

living out the remainder of my days
on a pig farm or second floor studio apartment

on the edge of town where petty thieves
carry switchblades and take what they will

I have been reduced to a number
ticking down from one hundred and one

I sit in the darkness in the farmhouse
or second story efficiency

waiting for the sun to shed some light
on how exactly I had gotten here or there





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , | Leave a comment
12 Dec 2021

for reasons I can’t explain


having been gone
I listen for my song
in faraway places
in my dreams I search
for days on end
upon awakening reality sets in
and I start another day
without my song

it’s as if I’m gradually
losing my sight
my peripheral vision
narrowing day by day
the song I once knew by heart
nowhere to be found
taken away from me
for reasons I can’t explain





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

Posted in Dreams, Poetry and tagged , , | Leave a comment
11 Dec 2021

visitors from the past


I didn’t know what day it was
but that’s okay
or so says the one
who keeps visiting every noon

it’s always cold outside
but that’s okay
I’ve got a jacket and she keeps
bringing me hot chocolate

we usually break bread
right here in this place
but sometimes
she takes me out
into a world I once knew

and that’s okay too





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , | Leave a comment
10 Dec 2021

something like poetry


idling on tokyo avenue
waiting for the light to turn green
boston blaring from coaxial speakers
back in the summer of seventy-nine

it’s easy to misremember
exactly how everything
went down in the day
but the music
that’s another story entirely
always open to interpretation





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

Posted in Micropoetry, Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
09 Dec 2021
5 Comments

identity breakthrough


forget about playing nicely
everyone’s had enough

first they took away the sandboxes
kindergarten will be next

go & figure things out on your own
and report back in a few years
   so we can evaluate how badly
you’ve been doing

the world is a gradual change
(not to be confused with progress)
with every step taken
two are typically reversed
and with every year of living
numerous degrees of separation
are shifted one way or the other

reaching the point of no return
is a common occurrence this day & age
which is one reason why
(if you think about it)
there are stretches of time
you’ve no idea who you really are





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , ,
08 Dec 2021

replaying the b-sides


the songs are always there
no copyright needed
you keep them on a shelf
in the air or deep within
on a rotisserie device
you created by following
the instructions
on a youtube video

in a prior life you played
piano in front of thousands
another time lead singer
in a pre-grunge band
the most memorable [however]
in non-performing roles
whether unencumbered in the loge
or all lit up in the mosh pit





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , | Leave a comment
08 Dec 2021
3 Comments

Book Release – Derecho by J Matthew Waters

Thank you Tara & Raw Earth Ink!

tara caribou's avatarRaw Earth Ink

Raw Earth Ink is proud to present J Matthew Waters’ poetry chapbook, Derecho.

On August 10, 2020, with very little time to prepare, a derecho hit the city of Cedar Rapids, Iowa causing widespread devastation. Known for its tornadoes, no one anticipated a fast-moving hurricane-like storm with straight-line winds of up to 140 mph that would last over 45 minutes. The unprecedented storm heavily damaged the city, impacting every resident in some way or other.

Without power for thirteen days, author J Matthew Waters stepped outside his home to witness trees down, houses destroyed, and neighborhoods unrecognizable. These are the poems and photos that came out of those following days. Not as a journal, but as a reflection of his state of mind.

I hope you’ll consider picking up a copy of some Mr. Waters’ most introspective poetry to date. Found in paperback at lulu, Amazon, Barnes…

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Posted in Poetry
07 Dec 2021

blank sheet of paper


feeling tired & a bit blue
thumbing through thumbnails
trying to find that genuine smile
must have been
two or three or four years ago
for some reason time
has ceased to be linear

nights dominate the skies
crescent moon stationed eloquently
neighborly planets presenting
themselves as escorts
pre & post dusk

impatient poet
dwells inside a world inside a world
pen or pencil in one hand
flashlight in the other
rhymes & alliteration like static noise
grinding & sizzling & echoing
inside his crowded head





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , | Leave a comment
06 Dec 2021

the lord of the elephants


first day of first grade
mother drops off son
the former feeling independent
the other apprehensive

but this particular school
does not belong to anyone
save the children

they are the rulemakers
the judges & the jury
the fate of others in their hands
the good & the bad
and all things in between
separating the ugly from the beautiful
always mindful of keeping
the white elephant at bay





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

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

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