jdubqca

poetry by j matthew waters

Archive for the tag “lost love”

15 Nov 2023
1 Comment

glass doll


he couldn’t stop looking at
her microchipped eyes
near perfect
like a purple diamond

of course she was smartly
dressed [again]
sporting an accessory
around the neck
another on the right ankle
(otherwise untouched)
her eyes looking upward
and to the right

back in the day
she used to look his way
long before anyone knew her
before fame & fortune
was her new reality
—leaving him alone in the city
walking the streets
& gazing
past storefront windows





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

Posted in In the City, Poetry and tagged , ,
14 Jan 2023
2 Comments

missing her


there was something I was going to say
over and over and over again
but whatever it was it just went away
and I was left wishing my heart was cold

I was lost inside my bewildered mind
going over and over and over again
where it was I wanted to be
but I was frozen in my own tracks
believing I would likely die from the cold





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

Posted in Micropoetry, Poetry and tagged , ,
15 Jun 2018
9 Comments

without love I won’t survive


it’s not easy to survive without love
someone to touch
if only for a moment in time
attempting to describe
that which can never be
like a sunset in wintertime
that was meant for only you and me




june two thousand eighteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Micropoetry, Poetry and tagged , , ,
30 Apr 2016
6 Comments

where o where can she be


I was born to live forever
cursed by the very gods
seeking to destroy eternity

why did I fall for such lies
constructed by warped minds
promising to ease my pain

it took a lifetime to find you
and now you are gone
like a ship passing through time


april two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Micropoetry, Poetry and tagged , ,
25 Apr 2016
4 Comments

I lost my smile and moved along


these feathers cannot tickle me
they only make me sad
knowing once they soared above
in search of one true love

these feathers I did come across
beyond the beaten path
black and white and gray like a ghost
commingling with rotting leaves

to pick them up and take them home
or let them fade where they will
I lost my smile and moved along
knowing later I’d retrace my steps


april two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Birds, Nature, Poetry and tagged , , , ,
10 Jan 2016
2 Comments

In Search of Clues in Phoenix


In the sink there is a teacup
half filled with water
while on the drying rack
there is a perfect match
upside down and clean

I understand twenty questions
is just a game
but so is jenga and jacks
each requiring simple dexterity
and a playing partner

When you didn’t show up
I figured I’d gotten it wrong
but when rechecking the facts
discovered my recordkeeping
perhaps was incomplete

Like a child raising his hand
dying to answer the question
I become void of thought
incapable of speech
when called upon

Blindly crawling in the dark
I shift through ashes
of bones and feathers
sniffing for that elusive spark
certain to bring you back


january two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , ,
18 May 2014
22 Comments

river of sorrow


first I lost my love
then I quickly lost my mind
encapsulated in glass
crashing headlong downstream
toward the convergence
known as the styx

consumed by the great marsh
my mind disappeared
deep within the underworld
leaving me cold and empty
and unable to understand
exactly what afflicted
my ailing heart



may two thousand fourteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , , , , , , ,
20 Apr 2014
8 Comments

vanishing trick


I would understand the ending to
every single story inside you
if only you would open your skin

I would understand if you chopped
every branch and bough from the
apple tree and
carved into its core
your own sacred totem pole

if you chose to set sail off the rocky
shores of the atlantic
and never return to our native land
I would understand

if you were born in another place
and a different time
I would understand you as much
as I do today

should you vanish without a sound
nor provide a reason for
not wanting to see me again
I would only pretend to understand



april two thousand fourteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , ,
12 May 2013
2 Comments

saint somewhere


the trains have all left
this dusty little town
and I’m left on the trackside
without even a dime
to buy a little more time
as my woman sits in coach
destination saint somewhere



may two thousand thirteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Micropoetry, Poetry and tagged , , , , , , ,
22 Dec 2012
7 Comments

outside my window


peering out my window
clouds gather around
and darken
a once promising
bright day

blackbirds circle above
slowly descending
and squawking
instinctively finding
shelter

thunder murmurs and moans
and i close my eyes
suppressing
a distant memory
knocking

once the showers arrive
i gaze past the pane
your image
refreshing like the rain
falling



december two thousand twelve
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Nature, Poetry and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , ,
07 Jul 2012
2 Comments

Tuesday’s Gone


There’s something about this coffee,
I said, speaking to the cat,
knowing she knew exactly what I meant
because she too drinks the same water
from this dated kitchen.

There’s nothing right about this place,
it seems to have lost
the intimacy it once had.
Instead of doing anything about it
I’m just going to drink
this lousy cup of coffee
and wonder where the angels went.



july two thousand twelve
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Animals, Poetry and tagged , , , , , ,
19 May 2012
5 Comments

Horseless Chariot


Bring me back pictures
from Paris
or better yet email them
as you take them
with your lovely friends
who really aren’t your friends
but hired sycophants
who follow you
all over the world

Bring me flowers
from foreign lands
prove to me that you still love me
and want me around
even though
you left me here
daydreaming
in my horseless chariot
wondering where you are





may two thousand twelve
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved



View the French translation version by Gyslaine Le Gal by clicking here

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , ,
12 May 2012
2 Comments

dinner for two


he always prepared
dinner for two
even though she had left him
without a goodbye

it was nice to slow down
and smile again
reminisce about how grand
yesterday was

every time he mentioned
a sunday picnic
she would make an excuse
and retire to her room


may two thousand twelve
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , ,
07 Feb 2012
2 Comments

without a clue


we had met it seems ages ago
at a time when no one knew
how to plant corn or make bread

back then days were upside down
and the moon was locked
in its place: a perfect excuse
to exaggerate without consequence
and pretend logic never existed

as time passed many faces rotated
around the clock
some memorable
some forgotten
some forever fixed in consciousness

without any particular reason
the alternative path rarely presented itself
until one night in the future
the moon beamed a smile
and there we stood face to face


august two thousand eleven
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , , ,

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