jdubqca

poetry by j matthew waters

Archive for the tag “poetry”

24 Jan 2015
2 Comments

I lost a day and found everything


time machine on four wheels
fueled by some kind of natural gas
yet to be mined or refined
sent me on backward courses
destined to make me believe
in new definitions

there is something to be found
where you least expect
especially when weaving in
and out of byways and highways
genuine or imaginary or
in the design phase

bracing for impact I wasn’t
sure if I was exiting or entering
my man-made machine
simple and complex and
able to travel everywhere
in a matter of seconds



january two thousand fifteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Dreams, Poetry and tagged , , , , ,
21 Jan 2015
5 Comments

second story rescue


I’ve been here before
I recognize the painting on the wall
recall being inside this second story
room with drapes flowing out like fire

below in the courtyard
chickens and children scramble about
and I squint my eyes peering
past hills rolling into my heart

everything is moving away from
my current line of vision
and I stand bent over and desperate
reaching out to be rescued



january two thousand fifteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , ,
20 Jan 2015
6 Comments

I took hold of one end and she the other


pulling back with equal strength we stretched the
dried-out wishbone ever so slowly

it was then I wondered why there are always
winners and losers
why the winning side always smiles
and laughs and dances and kisses
spraying champagne and crying for joy

it was then the bone snapped and I stood
there smiling with the longer piece

here you go I said handing her the winning ticket
let’s get out of here
lunch is on me



january two thousand fifteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , ,
18 Jan 2015
2 Comments

lord of my machines


he took the microphone
and introduced himself
men without souls below him
fists raising and voices cheering
redefining their short-lived lives
chanting ingrained mantras

he convinced them they are
more than mere machines
destined to find praise and glory
long after the killing is done



january two thousand fifteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Micropoetry, Poetry, War Poems and tagged , , ,
17 Jan 2015
2 Comments

beyond the light


pretending this life-giving light
never once existed is like
accepting neither did I

wandering in the darkness
catlike eyes search for nothing
in particular but hopeful
to find something new

tall trees open up like umbrellas
protecting the ground
from metallic dust showers
turning into cosmic twisters
chased by space cowboys
riding sun-powered horses

life beyond the light is like a twin
searching for her lost soul
relentlessly persevering



january two thousand fifteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

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

made in the shade


these fears inside I lay to rest
as setting sun bows and
curtsies one final time

I’m off to chase grander stars
hosting brighter moons
orbiting other oceans
sent on my merry way
accidentally
a victim so it seems
partially of my own accord

there are no sad marches
no guns to be fired
no motorcycle escorts
no victory day parades

there are no flowers or polaroids
or guestbooks or folded flags
no children sniffling
or women weeping

from now on the future
is my present
and whatever good I left behind
would one day become
a necessary ingredient
to grow the shadiest of trees



january two thousand fifteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , , ,
13 Jan 2015
9 Comments

picnic in the park overlooking the cemetery


it just sucks
all this is going on and one day
nothing matters
none of it matters
and you’re gone
and there’s nothing more

who’s to say there’s nothing more
she says
sitting back in her director’s chair
legs crossed and freshly shaved

don’t go there he says
don’t you dare go there

maybe death is a good thing she says
maybe it’s the start of something new
and hopelessly beautiful
just like this glass of champagne

maybe we shouldn’t be buying champagne
he says
maybe we should be buying real estate

yes she says
a change of scenery would do you wonders



january two thousand fifteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , , ,
11 Jan 2015
8 Comments

the queen’s rapture


your empire means nothing to me
but your queen is my everything

kidnapped and held for ransom
you scrambled to amass
your very best men
sent them on a quest to save her

I directed them down multiple ways
each avenue looping into other
promising outlets where horses
drink from rivers flowing underground

and so you regrouped yet again
the man we call king
hiring more men to satisfy
your obsession with recapture
an obsession
certain to awaken royal madness
stirring within a mighty empire



january two thousand fifteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , , ,
08 Jan 2015

that someone else


for ten seconds I sat there
dumbfounded
the image so clear in my mind
what I was going to do
who I was going to be
but then out of nowhere
all clarity left my memory
and for ten seconds I sat there
perplexed how I lost the vision
or the means to flip back on the light

for a moment I nearly cried
and another ten seconds later
I became myself again



january two thousand fifteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , | Leave a comment
06 Jan 2015
8 Comments

Kaleidoscope


I’ve secluded myself or
shall I say excluded myself (from others)
confined to a modest space
somewhere in Phoenicia
surrounded by stained glass distractions
which keep out the harsh daylight
only to reappear much later as
illuminated decorations of the night

There is no time for sleep and
cloudless nights make for lighter work
problem solving triangles
and troubleshooting new moons
piecing back together romances
from far away places where future
discoveries withstand the test of time



january two thousand fifteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , , ,
04 Jan 2015
7 Comments

tuesday bloody tuesday


he was tired of being nice
so he moved on to better things
hooked up with some of the boys on
thursday night south of eighteenth street

his woman wasn’t happy with some
of the choices he was making
proceeded to tell him so friday morning

he bought a handgun and spent
his saturday at the pistol range
clearing his mind by repeatedly
reciting bang bang bang

on sunday she sat polishing her rosary
wearing dirty white gloves
church bells ringing in the distance

when monday night mob turns raw
he slips into a brand new world
picking up instincts and aiming
to get a clear shot at something



january two thousand fifteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in In the City, Poetry and tagged , , , ,
03 Jan 2015
2 Comments

in remission


things build up inside
so when you can’t breathe right
you reach for something
that really isn’t there
like that new stuff you heard
just arrived to town

clean for weeks
you walk the streets
hitting bistros and internet cafés
but you steer clear of the bars
where former junkies
prey on innocence

chasing down demons
is not your specialty
but for the moment the madness
inside remains at bay

moving away from the lights
your inside limits have no bounds
(as if you have no bones)
and for the moment
you are afraid but convinced
your breathing will not stop



january two thousand fifteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in In the City, Poetry and tagged , , ,
01 Jan 2015
4 Comments

I wasn’t too worried about tomorrow


I had all this money stashed away
and I didn’t want anyone to know about it

It kept me up at night thinking about how
many different ways it could make me happy

but I really didn’t want to disturb it
so all it did was grow and grow and grow

I once thought it would solve any problem
thrown its way
but after withstanding
inflation and corrections and acute depression
all it ever really gave me was artificial respiration



january two thousand fifteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , ,
31 Dec 2014
6 Comments

one-way ticket out of here


I walked the back streets into the
heart of the city
pulling on cigarillos and
spitting on beetles

it was noon and I should have
been in school
but the gray sky somehow
took hold of my mind
led me away
to where I was needed most

weeks earlier I had been hoping
to hook up with the outlaw josey wales
but that opportunity had
come and gone
and I was left holding my
head in my hands

(I reminded myself that back home
there is only so much dirt to sweep)

god’s plan is not mine to question
but I’m grateful for the few
hundred dollars in my front pocket
not to mention a one-way ticket
and my mother’s rabbit’s foot





december two thousand fourteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in In the City, Poetry and tagged , , ,
28 Dec 2014
10 Comments

poetry is a story


poetry is a story
a picture
a locomotive out of control
a spaceship exiting inner space
connecting with anything
that may or may not rhyme

december two thousand fourteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Micropoetry, Poetry and tagged , , ,
26 Dec 2014
2 Comments

more dangerous dead


twenty-five lifetimes ago
there I was
witnessing the truth with my
very own eyes
chronicling
the birth
the childhood lessons
the ministry of the baptist
(and his beheading)
the sermon on the mount
the riding into town on a donkey

since then throughout
all these centuries
I’ve watched this beautifully
tolerant notion of community
torn down and
snatched by ordinary thugs
manipulated and maligned
encompassing the earth
like thin strands of truth
woven from east to west

and if you pluck one here
or strum a few over there
you just might create
a little harmony

or a whole lot of war



december two thousand fourteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Dogma, Poetry, War Poems and tagged , , , , ,

Post Navigation

← Older Entries
Newer Entries →