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poetry by j matthew waters

Archive for the tag “poem”

19 May 2023

middle of the twenty-first


the hit got through
another run scored
the boo birds came out
in full force
cageless & marching
to the concessions

from the jumbotron
[and for the third time]
they heard harry caray
singing his heart out
people swaying & pointing
toasting to the dude
some saying they thought
he was dead

it started as a day game
that never quite ended
the full moon high behind the clouds
street lights flickering
backup generators humming
keeping all hopes alive





may two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserve

Posted in Baseball, In the City, Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
18 May 2023
4 Comments

under the microscope


at the university
on the campus called pentacrest
there is a valley & a dale
on one side of the river
—and just like a mirror
on the opposite side as well

it was the eighties
when the economy was shit
[or so I learned in jessup hall]
all the doomsday scenarios
leaving a pleasant taste on my palate

I remember walking up the hill
what seemed steeper than 45 degrees
keeping my head down
hauling a backpack full of books
telling myself I’m hiking on flat terrain

I always thought the eyes of the faces
would watch me with scrutiny
as if I was some sort of transplant
but in reality I was merely one of them
somehow surviving under the microscope





may two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserve

Posted in In the City, Poetry and tagged , , ,
17 May 2023

casualty


he was a number cruncher
hadn’t much time for cause & effect
[that is] until he started counting down the days

you see on theoretical paper
everything for him was black & white
—it’s where things added up with the help of
simple mathematics & determination
eventually becoming balanced
one way or the other

near the end the numbers went negative
underground so to speak
forcing him to change his ways
pursuing fractions of himself
inside newly discovered wormholes





may two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserve

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , , | Leave a comment
16 May 2023
8 Comments

celestial intelligence


you can only hope to outlive it
the system of the clouds
designed to wear you down
with or without shadows

a woman with wings
swoops near the surface & accelerates
back into the sky
—most likely she is not alone

how far they’ve traveled
is a matter of speculation
it’s as if they’ve been here before
the way they know
the terrain
the way they call your name

it’s never too late to change
they seem to be saying
coaxing you out of the cave
insinuating it’s safe again
to see the light of day





may two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserve

Posted in Aliens, Poetry and tagged , , ,
15 May 2023
1 Comment

Greener on the other side


Dirty scientists
geoengineering the weather
in cahoots with dirty bureaucrats
double agents most likely

Slow burns on land & sea
north of 50 degrees latitude
dimming the lights
casting shadow puppets
embedded in the clouds

Once upon a time acid rain
was the talk of the town
has since decoded itself

Godzilla acting like a good guy
but in a constant state of retreat
losing to assault rifles
crafted & controlled by mere children

It’s just a matter of time
before the Ark
takes off
to Mars





may two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserve

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , ,
14 May 2023

the future is in color


a tightness of the chest
should be an alarm
unable to be turned off
no matter what you do

how do you ignore the pain
does it visit you in your dreams
taking the lead in reverse
memories crystal clear
—but in black & white





may two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserve

Posted in Dreams, Micropoetry, Poetry and tagged , , | Leave a comment
13 May 2023

facing the edge


I pull to the side of the road
mainly out of curiosity

how am I to move
the injured marmot
to the side of the road

I don’t get out of the car
instead I look up at the sky
its eyes burning like death

I look away
as if losing a staring contest
with the sun

a vehicle drives by
and then another and another
a whole host of them
like well-equipped refugees

I take my cue from the marmot
[which has seemed to move on]
and proceed
against the grain





may two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserve

Posted in Animals, Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
12 May 2023

funk & wagnalls’ guide to poetry


experimenting w/punctuation
inside free verse poetry
inconsequential endeavors
having no easy answers
neither on this page
nor the next

some poets seem to have it
all figured out
juking & jiving
ducking & hiding
replacing one rhyme w/another
whether inside or out

there’s not much to think about
when your mind is going
twenty-four eleven
racing & replacing
long dashes & exclamation points
w/single solitary spaces





may two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserve

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
11 May 2023
2 Comments

scrolling thru negatives


the proverbial power nap
do I awaken from death
yet again
or will this be
the last encore
I’ll ever perform

when I fell off the stage
they attempted
to resuscitate me
but it was too little too late
my vital signs
digressing
into a black hole

professionals
& amateurs alike
review their camera rolls
from various angles
saying my god
he stood right before me
& now like the wind
suddenly nondescript





may two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserve

Posted in Poetry and tagged , ,
10 May 2023
1 Comment

outliving scarce resources


most care little
about running out of space
there’ll always be a patch
to plant pumpkins they say
always a spot in the wilderness
to build a log cabin

the bigger problem
most everyone seems to agree
is about running of time
at least living on this planet
with its natural resources
dwindling by the minute





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

Posted in Nature, Poetry and tagged , , , ,
09 May 2023

picking & choosing


they were waiting to have a child
until they could afford one
an unlikely proposition
especially during a recession

he would tell stories about being
the only child
while she lamented
of being the youngest of the litter

childhood memories
didn’t appear to have any bearing
with their recent decision-making
or lack thereof

when spring arrived they planted
a grafted apple tree
special-ordered from the nursery
the kind with four varieties

months later the economy improved
the apples ripe for picking
each one given a name
alternating between boy & girl





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
08 May 2023
2 Comments

moonless night


I’m uncomfortable in my bed
tossing & turning
as if in a grave
roots & stones & dirt taking hold
preventing me
from rising to the surface
from sleepwalking
to the north window
slinging it wide open
from floating across the room
like dracula
flinging open
the south window as well
a cool breezeway
quickly ensuing
allowing me to settle back in position
and dream peacefully
with an all night rain





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , ,
07 May 2023

rescue efforts


the song is barely heard
but it’s there
buried beneath the rubble

the children need to hear it
on their hands & knees
clawing & digging with their fingers

there I can hear the song again
one of them says
it’s like a whisper but it’s there
and the others agree
digging even faster now
saying yes we can hear it too

adults with shovels
frantically plunge & pull the blade
throwing the contents
past their shoulder
the light of day passing through
the song of hope growing stronger
with each & every effort





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
06 May 2023
3 Comments

no act of contrition


I took the liberty of picking out
some of your words
rearranged them to my liking
and sold them as my own

some might call it an act of stealing
but much like cheating
it never really happened
unless you got caught

mind you this is not an admission
especially since I never
mentioned it to anybody
but if someone claims otherwise
well that would be a lie





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , ,
05 May 2023

road tripping in the republic


the preparations are endless at some point
you say to yourself what the hell am I doing

but you go on anyway
first the passport and then the online shopping

to places like amazon to find that knockoff wallet
the one you carry around your neck

keeping your valuables out of sight
credit cards & euros & photos of your people

back home you’re afraid someone has stolen
the only identities you’ve ever known

meanwhile you are transported across the island
the one your ancestors came from

before arriving you used duolingo to learn the language
but then decided fuck it most of them know english

I bought a new iphone to take better pictures
in case I come across the whole lot of them

the mooneys and the connellys
tipping ales with the doyles in a tipperary tavern





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
04 May 2023
4 Comments

Nearing the finish line


Nobody knows how it ends
which is probably the beauty
(or ugliness) of it all

When Cash covered Reznor
it reached a broader audience
doubling down on the reminder
none of us are here to stay

After the tulips & daffodils
& bleeding hearts die off
other colors are eager to replace them
& like clockwork
that’s exactly what transpires

I was looking out the bay window
one super windy morning
I spotted you across the street
(as plain as day)
walking your dog & looking my way
— I waved back nonchalantly
as if it were yesterday





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , ,

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