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poetry by j matthew waters

Archive for the tag “poem”

20 Jun 2020

breaching the surface


under the stars I’m able to interpret
the bloodlines in your scars
deeply rooted & tender at the edges
undetectable like dark matter
indivisible to the naked eye

some nights stars don’t exist
[and never have]
though your scars
expand like the universe itself
free electrons & cosmic rays
tumbling freely & reaching
to touch them at the seams

once breaching the surface
anything is possible
your scars sending out feelers
first as background noise
then as multiple signals
taking up permanent residence
in so many places at once




june two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , | Leave a comment
19 Jun 2020
7 Comments

the tour guide


she gave me the proper motivation
to grasp what I would soon witness
as if seat-belted into a time machine
the dial turning counterclockwise
two & four & eight revolutions ago
landing in a sea of historical relevance

I nod my head & respond confidently
that I am good to go
good to go




june two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Micropoetry, Poetry and tagged ,
18 Jun 2020
7 Comments

Turning nightmares into shadows & shadows into light


I was a prisoner in Egypt for eight years
for crimes committed against the state

Though I was innocent they treated me fairly
providing food & shelter and paper & pen

It reminded me of a short story I read in college
about a self-imposed isolationist

And though I never became as ‘enlightened’
as the character in the story

I did expand my capacities in thought & action
my psyche & physique gradually transformed

By the time I was released nobody recognized me
and I was free to wander this world again




june two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged ,
17 Jun 2020
2 Comments

the ambush


they were waiting for me to pass by
the tree of five seasons
hiding behind the row of bushes
along the river’s edge

I had learned of the threesome’s dark secret
by an angel in last night’s dream
telling me to find another way

and so they sat there behind the bushes
for god knows how long
making fools of themselves
as I walked briskly through the city streets
occasionally whistling and laughing
all the way to the bank




june two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in In the City, Poetry and tagged , ,
16 Jun 2020
2 Comments

anywhere else in the world


not sure how many more degrees of separation
I’m willing to accept at this late stage of the game

the masses are becoming even more massive
thanks to this unstoppable reproduction of the species

I’m sitting on a park bench removing all thought
and suddenly none of this is no longer happening

a stranger comes up to me & offers me a cold drink
I happily accept & in silence we drink in the name of peace

blocks away there is violence & incalculable hatred
marching in an organized yet chaotic way

I wonder if we should leave & she reads my thoughts
assuring me we are safer here than anywhere imaginable




june two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in In the City, Poetry and tagged , ,
15 Jun 2020
2 Comments

temple of the dog


for the time being there’s nothing left to look at
everything’s been torn or burned down
systematically destroyed if you will

there’s talk on the street
everything’s going to be rebuilt
only this time
the landscape will be completely different

& best of all it will only take three days




june two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Dogma, Poetry and tagged ,
14 Jun 2020
2 Comments

alarm clock malfunction


you’re awakening and fully aware
that you are still here
something inside you sends signals
letting you know
another something inside you
is tugging at your skirt

how was it that you watched me
awaken at the birds’ first calls
studying me as as I blinked
open my blue eyes
everyone else in the dream
determining what is brand new




june two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Dreams, Poetry and tagged , ,
13 Jun 2020
2 Comments

retrofitting on the fly


I wasn’t sure what I saw
other than the planet earth
for you see I’m circling it
over land & sea
unsure which one of us
is actually moving

observations are obvious
the hurting apparent & real
even from a greater distance

there is this gradual descent
as inevitable as it may be
circling in a much different way
this time hawklike eyes
testing theories of survival




june two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , ,
12 Jun 2020
6 Comments

not a cloud in the sky


how many adjectives for the sky
do you keep in your pocket
long written down & folded into
an origami passport
open & closed with your eyes shut so many times
you wonder would it be best
to put them down in braille rather than words
or perhaps translated into countless languages
so when any moment good or bad
spontaneously presents itself
there’s not a chance in hell you will fail




june two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Nature, Poetry and tagged , ,
11 Jun 2020

reliving your own life


there’s nothing but thin white air
sweeping through the landscape
an invisible shield if you will
preventing anyone from crossing
to the other side

there are horses and rivers
and brave men & women
breaking past the thin white air
children clinging for dear life
however they may

yes it’s greener & yes it’s bluer
no matter where you run
inner self visualizing the outside
commandeering the thin white air
sending it skyward




june two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , | Leave a comment
10 Jun 2020

the grand illusion


I reach to touch a leaf
just as it separates from the tree
our association drifting apart
before it even begins

what seems like millions
upon millions accumulating
is nothing but a conceptual pile
looking to be jumped upon

the eventual scattering
and complete disappearance
is nothing but a grand illusion
graciously repeating




june two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Nature, Poetry and tagged , , | Leave a comment
09 Jun 2020

rock and roll cowboys


how many cowboys do you know
you’d probably be surprised
how they add up
coming in & out of your life over the years
whether on the big or little screen
in real life at the stables or rodeos
road tripping through the northern plains

when I was a kid we played
cowboys & indians
innocence at its worst and finest
getting sunburned under the july sun
your mother unconcerned about skin cancer
or historical facts

palm on face flipping through history books
bored to death in the classroom
listening to cowboy songs on the radio
turning the mundane into romance
the cowboy in the wild wild west
the cowboy in manhattan
the cowboy in hollywood california




june two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , | Leave a comment
08 Jun 2020
4 Comments

The Counterfeiter


I’ve been making & laundering money
for nearly eleven months now
and as they say so far so good

It took nearly just as long to set up shop
but the legwork & overtime efforts
appear to be finally paying off

Running your own business has its pros & cons
[as you may or may not know]
if anything it’s afforded me to travel abroad
where the greenback is wildly accepted

One thing keeping me up at night though
is the eventual transition to a cashless society
forcing me back into the bitcoin mines




june two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , ,
07 Jun 2020
3 Comments

treasure hunter


word on the street says you’ve figured out
where the treasure is hidden
you know the one buried somewhere
in the rocky mountains

so many previous attempts
so many complicated arrests
and five too many deaths

while the streets and the virus
leave us in maddening turmoil
you’re devising your own escape
disappearing like tinkerbell
or some recent lotto winner

along the way you collect items
by way of photograph
human hair & buffalo skull
but the feathered talisman you pocket
just hours before the find

there’s a good chance we’ll never know
who you may or may not be
unless of course you care to wager a guess




june two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , ,
06 Jun 2020

in the end


here we are again flying against the wind
settled safely inside the saucer

we’re going thousands of miles per hour
strapped into our seats like babies

praying we’ll soon arrive at our destination
unharmed from the outside world

where to begin is the universal question
as if the moon & stars were always here

we marvel at the insects & birds & clouds
distractions from accomplishing our mission

where in the end we step out into this world
without bodysuits and without judgment
accepting the miraculous air without fear




june two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , | Leave a comment
05 Jun 2020
9 Comments

hunting in the dark


mushrooms are blooming everywhere
and I’ve not yet fallen asleep

it’s intense out in the fields
stars & supersonic sounds concealing
nearly dead brain waves coming back to life

it’s as if you’ve walked through here before
creating space & carving new paths
careful not to disturb the peace




june two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged ,

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