where do you get your ideas
she once asked me
I didn’t know what to say
so I said nothing
once again she asked
where do you get your ideas
finally I answered
from you my dear
and everything that encircles you
november two thousand twenty-two
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
love can blindside you
forcing you to lose control
sometimes hitting hard
like a car accident
often flickering like a light
gaining strength
minute by minute
slowly burning into a torch
at last settling into a
constant glow
yesterday the fire
suddenly ceased to be
the rampant love fully evolved
into something
incomprehensible
sinking below & hovering above
neither physically present
nor otherworldly
perhaps temporarily
someplace in between
may two thousand twenty-two
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
isn’t it always a matter of time
before the next big thing
whether cutting edge or horrific
the wait is far from long
isn’t it wild how a glorious idea
can be conjured in solitude
and distributed worldwide
by way of an invisible wire
isn’t it a crazy kind of love
that hits you smack in the face
when looking the other way
leaving you breathless
april two thousand twenty-two
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
always on the run misfortune separates a thousand lifetimes
we’ve met before
how many centuries past
however brief
suddenly standing before me
destined to my wife
there is much in store
as we settle upon a land
foreign to us
blues skies & fertile soil
designed by nature’s law
from this day forth
we shall never part again
not by life or death
neither by nature’s wrath
nor man’s unjust wars
march two thousand twenty-two
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
addicted to the unknown
& because we don’t know any better
we shame ourselves
by exposing our bodies & souls
up & down the avenue
on the shoreline
we casually collect seashells
& look at ourselves in the mirror
unlocking the mysteries
to the goddess of love
by eventide we turn away
throwing away the unconquerable
but keeping what matters most
the off-white angel wings
& footprints in the sand
march two thousand twenty-two
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
hey do you remember
do you remember
yes I remember of course I do
but have you forgotten
forgotten those beautiful days
no I’ve not forgotten those days
I’ll never forgot them
but what do you miss the most
what do you miss the most
oh please it’s you I miss the most
but I’m still here [I’m still here]
yes I know
you remind me everyday
and for that I am grateful
then why so sad
why the invisible tears
because as you’re fully aware
when I lost my love
I lost my independence
may two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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