still a middlegame
I start dancing with my king
performing a traditional triangulation
much to the chagrin of the opposing side
I lean across the board
you instinctively light my fire
leaning back I exercise my lungs
wondering when you’ll make the next move
november two thousand twenty-two
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
you know this much about me
this space between my thumb & forefinger
not quite touching
I tell you to trace your finger
down the scar along my right carotid
but you want nothing to do with it
telling me it scares you
there is no middle ground to be had
as if you speak in one language
and me in my very own
with a pencil I scratch out some words
ones I’m sure you’ll understand
I lift the paper up to my chin
but you turn away your pretty
but foreign face
telling me without talking
I am right about not knowing
september two thousand twenty-one
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
I’ve been stealing ideas out of thin air
and making them my very own
since the day I was born
I won’t pretend to lie
but my reality is based on fact
and though at times indisputable
I often find a need to prove myself
It’s true I discover raw inspiration
in a child’s song or a falling leaf
innocently singular and colorful
repeating itself in search of perfection
Her majesty is like a stranger
beautiful and approachable
leading me to believe her existence
is eternity personified
june two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
raven queen in glass castle
never looked so vulnerable
routinely giving out orders
casting her gaze past the river
considering new strategies
for nearly a fortnight
she relies heavily
upon her royal blue entourage
twisting and turning
throughout the night
churning out new tactics
she sends out messengers
one after the next
but none ever return
perhaps caught in netting
set by her own disloyal knights
single-handedly vanquishing
the enemy from within
she proclaims old bridges
will be restored
now that the past has been
unconditionally conquered
march two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
jet fighters crisscross the skies
like high flying bishops
licensed to fly
at control central pawns
surround the queen
fanning her with anything
they can get their hands on
at all four corners
white men wage war against
all other colors
wielding maces and knives
flashing suicide switches against
her majesty’s wishes
all the while horsemen
silently breathe into the fog
anxious for that chance
to live and die another day
june two thousand seventeen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
it wasn’t my move and I was pretty sure
I could grab a guinness and call it a night
there was no place to go so I recalled some
old photographs
which only reminded me
she doesn’t love you anymore
I sequestered myself on my own terms
but at least I didn’t turn into a hermit
but I’ve been growing out my hair
and chanting in between fastings
I wasn’t supposed to win
but my dream will tell me otherwise
june two thousand seventeen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
your empire means nothing to me
but your queen is my everything
kidnapped and held for ransom
you scrambled to amass
your very best men
sent them on a quest to save her
I directed them down multiple ways
each avenue looping into other
promising outlets where horses
drink from rivers flowing underground
and so you regrouped yet again
the man we call king
hiring more men to satisfy
your obsession with recapture
an obsession
certain to awaken royal madness
stirring within a mighty empire
january two thousand fifteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
santa ana winds fan
the flames and further
separate the queen
from her entourage
armed with rain clouds
pawns venture in unafraid
questing to rescue the
queen of the stone age
her king relocates castle
closer to the shoreline
petitions clergymen
for a wing and a prayer
backed into a corner
queen abandons her netting
races with her babies
spraying pepper mace
june two thousand fourteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
if only I had freed my mind
from the fatal threat
I would have cleared the board
of thoughtlessness
instead of surrendering
to acquiescence
august two thousand thirteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
you moved your knight
outside your comfort zone
tempting my lady
to meet you halfway
your little entourage
failed to retool
as your ambitious attempts
proved to be futile
withdrawn into darkness
I tightened the noose
offering your freedom
with a false ransom
april two thousand thirteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
Inside the city thousands converge
on the open market regardless the weather
The allure is captured in historical relevance
where honest exchanges of trade and art
played out for centuries with civility
At the center of the square an acting troupe
dressed as traditional chess pieces
reenact the ‘56 match between Byrne and Fischer
the characters moving on the checkered stage
as commanded by the intelligentsia
Relaxing on a bench I breath in the city’s past
contemplate how its future could possibly change
A block away a string quartet starts in on Mozart
compelling me to walk among the people
and toward yesterday’s perfection
april, two thousand twelve
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
The old man whittled
while rocking in a wooden chair
on the front porch
all summer long.
We visited him daily
bringing along a beer or two
we stole from our folks,
watched as he turned pieces of cherry
into chessmen.
In the Spring
he had lost his son to the war;
but in the Summer
he just rocked away
carving and sipping,
providing all us boys the wherewithal
to win the game.
april, two thousand twelve
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
You can’t force it
she said.
It was then I realized
I kept making decisions
without thinking
what might happen
to my beautiful Queen.
Lost and searching
for something magical
to capture my eye
I slowly realized
my quest for patience
was nothing more
than an elusive wish.
february, two thousand twelve
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
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