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poetry by j matthew waters

Archive for the tag “poem”

27 Oct 2019
2 Comments

iowa city sunset


the university resides on both
sides of the river
and for as long as I remember
there is nothing divisive
about this city

how many years have transpired
since finding myself recalling
bits and pieces of my stay there
of the many evenings relaxing
at the lagoon shelter house
the three of us sitting cross-legged on the deck
easily adjusting our attitudes
culminated by soundless fireworks
courtesy of a slowly descending sun



october two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in In the City, Poetry and tagged , ,
26 Oct 2019
2 Comments

rapid eye movement


I don’t want to call home anymore
afraid nobody will answer

it just rings and rings and rings
reminding me of the days I lived there
a signal it was safe to sneak in
through the back porch door
quietly tip-toe up the stairs
and into the solitude of my bedroom

from there I can hear the telephone ring
and ring and ring in the other room
I yawn and turn over onto my other side
ignoring everything in the outside world
blue eyes blinking feverishly
reliving days and months and years
in a matter of mere minutes

hours later the southern sun shines
through a second story window
one I’ve known all too well




october two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , ,
25 Oct 2019
5 Comments

physical empathy


there was a problem with my shoulder
but the x-rays contradicted my word
and when the good doctor pressed here
and prodded there I responded
I could feel no discomfort

my parting orders included the words
‘acute pain’ and it was then I realized
the health system can be like a chameleon

and so I made an appointment with a
physical therapist and she
easily found my trouble spots
exposing them as true weaknesses
addressing and describing them in such a way
that left me smiling and nodding my head

as time went by I assured her
exercises and effort were making a difference
but I sensed she thought otherwise

and though she never called me a liar
she nonchalantly explained how the pain
in my shoulder would never go away
much like the weight placed upon this world




october two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , ,
24 Oct 2019
2 Comments

“as soon as I am able”


turn down the volume
and listen to the raccoon’s story
doc’s fingers resting on his wrist
counting beats per second
heart racing for good reason

nobody has the time
to take everything into account
so we condense his story
into a nineteen sixty-eight song
one we love to play over
and over again

some scars heal and
others simply live to tell another tale
much like that of good rocky’s revival




october two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , ,
23 Oct 2019
6 Comments

inside my head


newly learned equations and nursery rhymes
running inside my head
up above shooting stars flash by
on a late summer night
sitting quietly on the front porch step
mother whispering this is
the perfect time to make a wish

first kiss and catcher in the rye
escaping out into the night
not a cloud in the sky
easily going back as far as we like
after all it’s inside my head
automatically recorded and easily
triggered for instant playback

random generators do not discriminate
bringing back to life the dead
reliving anything that once existed
charles lamb essays and red red roses
goldfinches and garter snakes
a baby’s cry or delightful laugh
residing comfortably inside my mind




october two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged ,
22 Oct 2019

sane for a day


stabbing practice takes place
in the second hour
children flashing big knives
and little swords
some pretending
to be bilbo with sting
others luke skywalker wielding
imaginary lightsabers

from an early age they learn
to deflect bullets
flying from all directions
whether head on
or through windows and walls
using state of the art
mind over matter techniques

teachers keep proclaiming
world sanity day is not far away
but in the meantime daily
practice and simulated attacks
coexist with pop quizzes
and outdoor recesses




october two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , | Leave a comment
21 Oct 2019
3 Comments

don’t let the world bring you down


I owe someone a call
a friend from yesterday
catch up to speed as they say
repeating everything is fine
and bending other lies

who are you again
listening until the end of the time
gradually second-guessing
old-school acquaintance
from modern day adversary

don’t we all end up
in the same place in the end
or is that just another untruth
handed down from
one conversation to the next

a simple dial tone seques
into a busy signal
leaving me somewhat amused
convinced anything said
was a matter of recorded time




october two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged ,
20 Oct 2019
2 Comments

how may I find you


how may I find you when you are nowhere to be found
barely beneath the surface like a sunflower seed

you are like a love song evolving out of thin air
lyrics and notes and chords coming together seamlessly

believe in me and I will believe in your every single word
regardless if you are blooming near or worlds away




october two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged ,
19 Oct 2019
3 Comments

where the mississippi flows east to west


I know where I’ve been
but not necessarily where I’m going
these city streets all look the same
some running parallel with the river
others perpendicular

without the river I am lost
and sometimes
I find myself running in circles
passing the same dairy queen
once or twice or trice
eventually pulling over
for a chocolate coated dilly bar

as the young lady
hands me back my change
I ask about the river
she rolls her eyes and points
past my shoulder
as if she’s told me a hundred times




october two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in In the City, Poetry and tagged , ,
18 Oct 2019

I heard a little girl say she’s in love with him


I see you from afar
comfortable in your own skin
a color often found in dreams
lighter than olive drab
and darker than brown sugar
especially complemented
by an absorbent southern sun

I heard a little girl say
someone’s in love
with an american soldier
passing out dark chocolate
and I can only imagine she’s
repeating something she heard
from a black and white movie

but that was long ago
and today is a different story
those american boys
now more than long gone
nothing but an unrelenting image
like bombs falling from the sky
displacing once bright colors




october two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry, War Poems and tagged , | Leave a comment
17 Oct 2019

you can run you can run


you find yourself asking
is this all there is
surrounded by strangers
feverishly attempting
to pump life
back inside you

there’s a resident priest
hanging outside the doorway
adjusting his off white collar
you’ve enough strength to yell
he’s on the wrong floor

they push against your shoulders
until your head sinks
back into the pillow
promising not to
suffocate you with it
as long as you stop all this fighting

reluctantly you agree
under a number of conditions
including to kindly ask the angel
sitting silently in the far corner
to get the hell out of dodge




october two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , | Leave a comment
16 Oct 2019

exceeding expectations


these things I don’t do
how long can the list possibly be
an empty bucket
kicked countless times
its surface looking like
the lighter side of the moon
its once accumulating contents
now free-floating in outer space

only centuries earlier we’d
smoke cigarettes in the alleyways
walking to and from school
convincing ourselves
we had all the time in the world
to do whatever it is
we were born to accomplish
on this unstoppable orbit




october two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , | Leave a comment
15 Oct 2019

of the almighty sun


who is he hiding in the shadows
among the naked trees
changing size and color and shape
coming and going as he pleases
depending upon
the angle of the sun

I’ve come to accept his presence
yet still I wonder who is he
hiding in the shadows
ever changing
approaching and receding
with a blink or two of an eye

neither friend nor foe
inevitably he will show his face
as prophesied in my dream
flexing his crimson or ivory wings
depending upon the angle
of the almighty sun




october two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Dogma, Poetry and tagged , | Leave a comment
14 Oct 2019

transplanting poppy fields


I listened to the sad sad story
how the war had taken its toll
it left me wondering of the fields
and when they would ever bloom

the story never seems to end
borders constantly changing
women and children marching on
poppies pinned to their hearts




october two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Micropoetry, Poetry, War Poems and tagged , , | Leave a comment
13 Oct 2019
2 Comments

seeing through things


it’s sunday evening and I’m starting
to see through things
much like I did when I was child

it’s cool and clear and the open air
is filled with electricity
rifling through my quiet complexity

I’ve kept to myself throughout this day
yet I’ve been everywhere
picking and choosing points in between

though there’s nobody remotely near
I can feel your company
your eyes penetrating right through me




october two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged ,
12 Oct 2019
3 Comments

standing the test of time


with age comes discovery
rising above the ordinary
whether major or minor
each a treasure in their own right
realized or still transforming

that old familiar friend
advancing its slow approach
as clear as crows flying
along darkened shoreline
cawing in and out of reality

nobody lives to tell the tale
or at least that’s what they say
but truth be told we’re all
remapping chartered territories
and rewriting age-old stories




october two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged ,

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