someday I’m gonna give
it all away—
everything I got
—kind of like a monk
but only different
I can’t ever see
shaving off all my hair
but growing out
my beard—now that’s maybe
something I could try
I’ve been thinking
about colors
how I’ve always said
green is my favorite
but as of late
—and for whatever reason
I can’t seen to get all the blues
off of my mind
march two thousand twenty-five
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
I never considered myself a fixer
instead believed sheer
determination might bring
harmony & happiness
I remember that one year
when positive energy abounded
like a field of wildflowers
but those months passed by
like some homemade flipbook
and I soon found myself back inside
that little box of empty
without question happiness
always slays sadness
though the trick may have less
to do with fixing anything
and more with imagining
outside the box
march two thousand twenty-five
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
Some people don’t want to hear certain things
I believe I was born to suffer
Over time I’ve come to accept the role
You see I am no different than you
I am my own god in human form
But upon my death I’ll become a true god
It will be from that moment on I should
Begin to understand my fate
The part that baffles me though
Is why haven’t I figured out who I was
In my prior lives
And for this reason
I can’t remember when I’ve felt this sad
february two thousand twenty-five
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
My brain is only a receiver, in the Universe there is a core from which we obtain knowledge, strength and inspiration. ~ Nikola Tesla
Perhaps you’ve already visited the core
in your most exclusive dream
when the signal was so strong
you had no choice but to be drawn
to the source of everything imaginable
But upon your eventual reawakening
the transmission ceased to exist
and you were left to discover reality
as it presented itself in real time
absorbed into either side of your mind
january two thousand twenty-five
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
I thought I’d take another angle
by giving hypnotherapy a try
under their spell I was found
inside a hole
one dug by myself
along with my other self
like some sort of oracle
the hypnotherapist convinced me to come out
commanding me to be centered
to remain focused on the present
when awakened I was half-naked
lacking any common knowledge
& for all I knew I was either
dying a slow death
or slowly coming back to life
june two thousand twenty-four
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
in the shower I sang sad ballads
I once knew by heart
one of which made me cry like a baby
until I shook myself
to attention
having finished soaping &
rinsing my body
after having shaved my face & neck
I started singing again
which of course led to more tears
—a clear indication that somewhere
down the line
I had softened into this person
I barely recognize
february two thousand twenty-four
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
what am I to solve
before leaving this place
once incapable of refusing
an unwanted invitation
yet this is where I stand
if only temporarily
asking my own questions
to a mind that has seen
many great & terrible things
these possessions of mine
why do they grow
and why am I unable
to rid of them
yet perfectly adept at burying
hand-picked memories
having once fueled me
day by day
only to haunt me by night
but what of the physical
versus the mental
are they really that far apart
but rather intertwined
in such a way
I’ll never fully understand
the connection
—that is as long as I wander
upon rock & water
january two thousand twenty-four
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
late autumn afternoon
digging into garden bed
and separating little bulbs
from big ones
I uncover a shiny emerald stone
I rub off the dirt with soiled fingers
and polish it with my shirt
kneeling and looking up
I hold it skyward past
silent clouds drifting
my eyes squinting
my mind racing
from out of this world
it came crashing
burrowing into the earth
untouched for perhaps centuries
but now my cherished treasure
if only for the shortest
moment in time
december two thousand fifteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
you spent a lifetime
away from home
discovering wormholes
this side of saturn
breaking old laws
and discovering the mother lode
leaving you to question
how many postcards
are better than earth’s
may two thousand thirteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
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