jdubqca

poetry by j matthew waters

Archive for the tag “love”

10 Jul 2019

eyes of disarray


love me once I said
and I will love you forever
and though quite frequently
we breathed the same air
eventually we went
our separate ways

millions of miles later
I somehow convinced myself
I didn’t deserve to be loved
and so I set a course
in the opposite direction

at first you wrote often
but never did you tell me
what I so desperately wanted to read
and when I wrote back
my sentences were filled
with lies disguised as inner rhymes

eventually all communication
would cease to be
and years later
I would find myself
reminiscing of those days
that may have never existed
leaving me imagining
what true love must be




july two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , | Leave a comment
25 May 2019
3 Comments

Rocket science love poem


You ask me so I tell you
usually not the right answer
but I’m okay with that
even though you’re not

What does it take to clear your mind
have you suddenly taken off lately
gone to places you’ve dared to dream
far away from mathematicians

[or have you been sitting idling by
expecting the stars to come to you]

We’re strangers no longer you and I
reunited if you will
casting spells and waging forces
       against an undefined enemy

It seems so complicated
like an elliptical galaxy
but like anything else
there’s always an easy answer
like buying a ticket to Saturn





may two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , ,
06 May 2019

present day preoccupations


I keep forgetting the calendar has turned
yet another page
and it’s six days into May
and I wonder where it is I’ve been

day after day after day
you tell me you love me
yet I’m far removed from such realities
preoccupied with unfinished stories
questioning what’s keeping
the hummingbirds from returning

there are places in the heart
I’ve dared yet sought to discover
afraid perhaps what I may find
and so instead I keep my mind
busily repairing someone else’s boat
that once sailed for two





may two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , | Leave a comment
05 Jul 2018

one warm winter’s night


you come to me as a spirit
poking and prodding and
whispering sweet discretions in my ear
but I am fast asleep like a bear hibernating
periodically shivering
but mainly motionless and soundless
secretly enjoying a series of
interconnected dreams
leading me from one kiss to the next




july two thousand eighteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Dreams, Micropoetry, Poetry and tagged , , , , | Leave a comment
26 Apr 2018
11 Comments

harden not your heart


weep not my love
for there is hope in isolation
and beauty in sorrow

though showers may fall
a window remains open
welcoming a warm breeze
clearing your uncertainty
and soothing your fears

past the horizon
and high above the clouds
your light is burning
dying to be seen




april two thousand eighteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Micropoetry, Poetry and tagged , ,
14 Feb 2018
6 Comments

on february fourteen


love is in the air
disguised as
manufactured clouds
billowing out of
corn sweetener smokestacks
rising above half-frozen river

quietly perched atop
flood water retaining wall
cupid draws back his bow
eyes purposely piercing
lonely hearts drifting
like pies in the sky





february two thousand eighteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , ,
18 Aug 2017
7 Comments

troubles here to stay


shadows are my friends and they
visit me often when least expected
whether I’m elated or tearful
or simply content with melancholy

rarely they bring me flowers but
when they do they are black and white
roses or begonias or pink petunias
since they know what I like

sometimes they tell me it’s okay to
change my name if need be
but I pretend not to listen and smile
turning ordinary thoughts into bouquets

it’s like a game this thing called love
suddenly evolving into something
that never existed yesterday
like a sunflower seed with promise



august two thousand seventeen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , ,
31 Jul 2017
6 Comments

another summer lost


open the windows and let cold air in
infiltrating your comfort zone and chilling
your most heated and desperate thoughts

I know not what raises your condition
bringing your ideas to simmering boil
followed by mind-numbing afterburn

I’ve spotted your face in the passing clouds
sliver of a silver moon peek-a-booing
songbirds praising your inner beauty

although impossible to keep you close
I’ve kept your photographs frozen in my mind
turning them into moving pictures

this cold air is bound to heat up again
meanwhile I huddle inside heavy blankets
waiting for winter solstice to show



july two thousand seventeen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Nature, Poetry and tagged , , , ,
19 Jul 2017
4 Comments

be still thy heart


be still thy heart and think of me
whenever summer breeze
brushes up against your face

long and weary are road and sky
going solo in search of love
virtual destinations unknown

time sits motionless inside looking glass
like magical portal to new worlds
casting lasting impressions



july two thousand seventeen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , ,
25 Dec 2016
12 Comments

how I am drawn to you


the town is vacant
abandoned by war
can you feel me
trembling with fear

the moon is afire
and the field is aglow
can you see me
chasing the wind

the bridge is out
and the river is frozen
can you hear me
calling your name

the border is near
attracting me closer
your arms reach out
unbelievably we embrace



december two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry, War Poems and tagged , , , , ,
30 Nov 2016
2 Comments

peeking around the next corner


it seems like everyone is hell bent on
picking a fight
but by everyone I don’t mean you or me

sometimes I want you to make me think
and other times I don’t

I’m not sure which is worse
pretending the white elephant
isn’t actually pink
or acknowledging all is fair
in lust and taxation

I didn’t come here looking
for a fight
and neither did you
so I keep on convincing myself
that’s what keeps us separated
from whatever it is
that’s hurting



november two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , ,
23 Aug 2016
2 Comments

messengers of love


there is just the one god
there shall be none of this
three-in-one nonsense
or some other silly notion
for without truly believing in the one
man will never love his brother
what he loves for himself
      while loving thy neighbor
        (as thyself)
remains the most daunting proposition
       (ever put to the test)
for well over two thousand years


august two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Dogma, Poetry and tagged , , , ,
07 Aug 2016
11 Comments

I will find you


I will find you in the corner of my mind
where wildflowers replaced minefields
deactivated by protectors of the peace

I will find you living amongst the dead
melding within the countryside
free from worry and
greeting each morning with open arms

I will find you like a promise finds a keeper
like a satellite finds her signal
like a caterpillar finds new life


august two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , ,
28 Jul 2016
2 Comments

wind chime outside my window


winds of change remain the same
although uncertain futures often
bear the best fruit

half a world away pacified oceans
symbolize endless opportunities
for lasting peace

much like the butterfly
there are no boundaries as long
as there is wind to sail
    and the wind
         oh the wind
breathes forth new life
exhaling a new kind of love
never before seen


july two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , ,
19 Jul 2016
12 Comments

toward the light of day


think of me
when the skies in your dream
break free from dusk

dream of me
when you roll over and discover
your softer side

think of me
as if I was still a young man
running after you

remember me
chasing you in your dreams
toward the light of day




july two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Dreams, Poetry and tagged , , ,
17 Jul 2016
6 Comments

there is love in the clouds


nobody’s tending the fire
it’s just burning on its own
neither controlled nor uncontrolled
emitting a stench of indifference

massacres and coup attempts
repeat like the rising of the sun
highlighting headlines on
doorsteps as death tolls escalate
and accumulate

meanwhile the fire burns
fueled by arms deals between
friends and foes
stoked by power struggles and
brokered by corrupt politicians
enabling strategic corporations

social consciousness bombards
wireless outlets with outrage
pumping up clouds until they burst
pamphlets of love falling
like rain across a world on fire


july two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry, War Poems and tagged , , ,
13 May 2016
6 Comments

Enough of silly love songs

by Morgan M Byers & J Matthew Waters

It’s the way you must be feeling
guarded and shielded
my love unable to reach you

How I hate to be broken
the one who has loved you
since the beginning of time

I am willing to be patient
standing outside your heart
waiting for you to accept me

Standing along your shore
I watch how the rest of the world
reaches out to touch you

Pretending not to hurt
I patiently wait for permission
to give you the love you deserve


may two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , ,
28 Apr 2016
7 Comments

gone for the winter and promise to return


please forgive me for asking
but how much in the world
did you pay for your time machine

do you sleep in it every night
turning back time
or do you always look so lovely by
possessing the kind of fountain
long sought after
but never found by modern man

years pass by and my body
gradually gives way
my heart growing weary
(not from worry
but) by forgetting to keep
your beauty all to myself

in the cool autumn air
I wave goodbye as you leave me
never looking back

you say the time machine
will one day bring you home

you say the southern waters
welcome us both

but I concede I must stay behind
keeping the winter warm
while praying for your safe return


april two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Nature, Poetry and tagged , , , ,
31 Mar 2016
6 Comments

an army of one


I sat documenting a million lives
stretched across the globe
not kings or queens
but mere men and women and children
lost in pages of history
     only to be reborn
           centuries later
void of memory but striving
to improve their worth to a god
seldom offering second chances

time and again they returned
to earth much like wayward souls
unable to let go
cast down by a god convinced
they will one day lay down their arms
and see for themselves
there is love for all the ages


march two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry, War Poems and tagged , , ,
17 Mar 2016
4 Comments

generations reborn


fire was in order
to control the weeds
little did they know roots
have an empire of their own
conspiring below the surface

earth-shaking machines
pounded past the concrete
instantly peeling back
layers of history that took
centuries to build

civilizations clash
before our very eyes
whether on this continent
or another planet
certain to be conquered

arms races don’t exist
where love has taken hold
where destructive forces
so very long ago
descended into the sheen


march two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , ,
26 Nov 2015
11 Comments

while drinking water from my hands


as evening fades like a memory
of a faraway dream
I am reminded of words spoken
barely audible above nightingales
ushering in a rising moon
a promise so to speak
made beneath the warmth
of december clouds
that the spirit of the flame will forever
prevent our love from growing old


november two thousand fifteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Micropoetry, Poetry and tagged , ,
02 Nov 2015
4 Comments

save today


she told me to never go away
that tomorrow will always be here
and I pretended to understand
exactly what she meant

she swore she never saw me
reading in the morning light
my story but a whisper
she tried to comprehend

she could never set me free
not while my words silently
surrounded the air and
seemingly flowed inside her

following her for days on end
and time of no consequence
I became obsessed with turning
a single day into all of eternity


november two thousand fifteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , ,
14 Oct 2015
6 Comments

that lonesome road


repressed memories lay in shadows
begging to be found
along the side of the road
leading to a place called redemption

I was supposed to pick up the pieces
but I was busy
losing track of precious time
barreling down this lonesome highway

forgive me for my forgetfulness
those wildflowers found
in the middle of somewhere
were meant to bloom in your memory

this love I possess is eternal
quietly moves on
past tomorrow’s horizon
and beyond the roadway to the stars


october two thousand fifteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , ,
22 Sep 2015
12 Comments

say you’ll haunt me


inside this cage I hear you sing
your personal psalms
songs of woe and joy
and everything in between

during your darkest moments
supernovas shine high above

though not in your line of sight
they keep you off guard and hopeful

your face is patterned
vertical lines channeling emotions
streaming from your eyes

out in the yard shadows cast
familiar symmetrical smiles

some nights you are unprepared
to fall asleep in my arms

one day a miracle will open the door
leaving you with new ideas
either spiraling yourself far away
or forever haunting my days


september two thousand fifteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , ,
26 Jul 2015
5 Comments

Silo

by Daniella Sciuto & J Matthew Waters

Are you jealous
Of the space between us
Filled with darkness
And twinkling stars

Bereft of passion
The green patina of sarcasm
Lobs my way

Have you forgotten
All those years
Reduced to a mere photograph
Safekept under glass

Encapsulated
In an unmanned
Underground
Silo

Why did you build that bomb
The one that divided us
A mushroom cloud of discontent
Hovering overhead

As our atom split
Turning two into too many nights
Alone and cold in the dark
I tried to seek a sign up above
Past an endless sky without light

Finally I ask myself am I the one
Am I jealous of the space between us
Of the fragile photograph kept under glass

Was it me who built that bomb
Did I hover in discontent
Watching as we split
Lonely in this silo in the dark

july two thousand fifteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , , ,
02 May 2015
2 Comments

love in the shadows


there is nothing new here
except for an occasional idea
unspoken and not stirred
swallowed in large gulps

I poured myself another
but still nothing new
same birds singing sad songs
dogs barking at moons
invisible hands swatting
glass wind chimes

the fly and the cockroach
scamper across the floor
the former riding atop the latter
waving his cowboy hat
like a drunken fool

looking around I find there
is nothing new here
not the television
not the radio
not the woman next door
or the sniper in the woods

I am living proof
that the damned still matter
(and even though)
I am drowning my sorrows
there is comfort knowing
there is love in the shadows



may two thousand fifteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , ,
09 Jan 2015
12 Comments

still the same


I got out of the house using a bonafide
lie about meeting my buddy at the
pinball arcade
hopped on my tenspeed and
pedaled the shortest route to prospect park

lying on our backs at the top of the hill
it felt as if we were vertical
suspended if you will
the river far below our feet
the clouds above
shaped like sails and almost touchable

all afternoon we held hands and
talked about how old we felt
trapped inside young bodies
unnerved by the fact this place in time
would always be the same




january two thousand fifteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , ,
29 Oct 2014
6 Comments

thirty stories tall


sweetly your song presents
promises
and stays forever in tune
like a prayer

in my mind I hear nothing
but a repeated melody
that is never tiring and
always alive in my dreams

there is an inescapable part of
young love
never lost between inception and death
somehow living on above reality

alone thirty stories high
I endure my lowest hour
mindful all is equal between young lovers

oh cruel world
thank you for delivering unto me
your irony
for without it
I would have given up long ago

I would not give up the world
for anything except you
would not allow myself
to be alienated from your
yesterday or today
would always be near you
wherever you may be

first kiss so true
oh so vivid in our minds
first love at first sight

beauty appears out of nowhere
shuts off the lights and
turns on our lives

anywhere but here
thirty stories tall
how I’d fall off the edge
to be with you right now



originally written circa nineteen eighty-five
rewrite published on ArtiPeeps earlier this year
recital recorded october two thousand fourteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , ,
14 Feb 2014
16 Comments

on valentine’s day


love is like an open prairie
self-sufficient and showcasing
every true color this world has to offer
weaving blankets of warmth on
cool autumn evenings
and providing shade to weary souls

love is like the birds of the prairie
welcoming each day with
songs of praise
awakening the flowers whose petals
unfold and open their hearts
without a single solitary condition





february two thousand fourteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Nature, Poetry and tagged , , , ,
24 Aug 2013
13 Comments

those shoes


she wore them only
on special occasions
and every time I saw them
I just wanted to slip them off her feet
and take her upstairs

but alas that was just a wish
and we paraded into town
high heels and all
the center of attention
every place we ventured

wickedly well rested
we danced into the night
tearing down disco walls
and cutting beale street rugs
deep inside memphis


august two thousand thirteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , , , , , , ,
28 Jun 2013
4 Comments

unlucky in love


he sits in his lazy boy chair
and yells at the umpire on TV who
keeps getting all the calls wrong
exhaling cheap cigar smoke
while putting down old style beer
in 12 ounce gulps

in the other room his partner
in crime fixes potato salad
to go with his pastrami on rye
saddened at the thought
mister james gandolfini
has left her lonely world



june two thousand thirteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Baseball, Poetry and tagged , , , , , , ,

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