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poetry by j matthew waters

Archive for the tag “apathy”

my active imagination


the telephone doesn’t ring anymore
long ago replaced by something
that just vibrates
the caller’s identification appearing
out of thin air
usually unrecognizable
like an alien’s face on a milk carton

I’ve been drifting of late
disconnected by way of apathy
neglecting anything needing charging
in order to survive
resurrecting once abandoned vices
that may or may not
jump-start my active imagination





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

on the high seas


forgive my apathy
I’m long adrift in no man’s land
examining all life around me
as if for the last time

offbeat winds blowing
in contradictory directions
stars steering me at night
offering empathy

this invisible me
like a thimble in the raging sea
believably staying afloat
white flag waving high




october two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

reborn into apathy


it’s 3:30 in the morning
suddenly I’m forced
back into consciousness

it’s been going on for
three days now
like some stupid sideshow
nobody wants to watch

do I give in & rise to my feet
& suddenly start walking again
or do I crawl back inside
& cry myself to sleep

I’ve played out a number
of possible scenarios
but not a one of them
appeals to my inner ego

meanwhile the clock is ticking
& people of many color are dying
as I lay here before the
unquestionable rise of dawn
doing nothing




july two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

the day of the sentencing


he was so polite
he said yes ma’am
and no thank you
even asking permission
to use the bathroom

while he was away
everyone agreed
something terribly
went haywire upstairs
while everyone else
stood by fast asleep


march two thousand thirteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

the great slide


the older i get the less i know
and that is the only thing
i know for certain

i’ve become disconnected
with the political process
in this screwed up country
where we spend more time
kicking the can
down deficit lane
than trying to figure out
why most of us here
don’t want to be able to
feed our own faces

i heard the other day
the president wants some sort
of mandatory preschool program
put in place
so the little ones can take to task
and figure out why we continue
to get further behind china
who will one day no doubt
be pulling all the strings
dangling above our heads



february two thousand thirteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

american apathy


i heard it through the grapevine
was playing on the radio
when they interrupted to announce
the president had been shot

it was the marvin gaye version
the one released a year after
gladys knight & the pips put it out
back in nineteen sixty-seven

i tried calling the radio station
to ask how necessary it was
to cut into such a classic song
but i just couldn’t get through





october two thousand twelve
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

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