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poetry by j matthew waters

Archive for the tag “Poetry”

18 May 2019
4 Comments

new york state of mind


it was a hot dog kind of day
not the kind you buy in the grocery store
but the meaty ones from a push cart
or your local neighborhood tavern
served any which way you like
with corn fritos and your favorite beverage

it was an indiscreet
and unsuspicious kind of day
one in which you can express your feelings
without exaggeration or superficiality

go ahead and pick one
out of 35 variations
or better yet create your own
like the way you used to do





may two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in In the City, Poetry and tagged , ,
17 May 2019
3 Comments

time keeps on slipping (or fly like an eagle)


weekend planner says it’s time to
unplug and slip into a future
where part of the solution
comes from those with all the money

in a world full of greed
when does it stop spinning
so we can take stock
at least of for a moment
of what we got

as far as poverty and housing
and footwear is concerned
steve miller once proclaimed in song
there’s a solution
but that was over forty years ago
and though it keeps playing on air
nobody’s been exactly listening





may two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , ,
16 May 2019
4 Comments

precious is the night


I was looking for some sort of sign
a little something to let me know
you were alive and well

as the electrical storm rolled in
I could detect your precious thoughts
coming through in fits and starts

though the pain in my hands
worsened from the impending doom
I managed to subdue my foreboding
whilst transcribing reassuring poetry





may two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Nature, Poetry and tagged , ,
15 May 2019

I died in my dream last night


do you remember me
I was the one who died in his
sleep last night

as I recall you were with me
and I had pleaded
that you slow things down
but we went veering off the path anyway
projected into an orbit
defying quantum mechanics

it wasn’t the first time
I went sailing off into space
never to return
the world below me gradually
becoming smaller
the next one
suddenly
becoming familiar





may two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Dreams, Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
14 May 2019

water in the pail


I’ve not walked on water for so long
I’m beginning to fear it may
never happen again

contemplating such improbabilities
I’m often carried back in time
becoming water in the pail
transported from the river to village

once among the populace
I’m both a god and commodity
bringing smiles to little ones’ faces
and comfort to the weary

but if I had a choice
I’d remain at the water’s edge
hoping for a chance to walk again





may two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Dogma, Poetry and tagged , , | Leave a comment
13 May 2019
2 Comments

as if it had the power


somehow the world’s lost
its song
gone in an instant
snatched away
like a pet or child
left unattended

tragic they call it
on the evening news
search parties gathering
spreading from county to county
and country to country
across fields and woods
bodies of water and coldwater streams
people from all places
holding vigils and praying
all for a song

how did it come to this
one song garnering such attention
such affection
such affiliation
as if it had the power
to tame the savage beast
and bring peace on earth





may two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , ,
11 May 2019

mutiny


I’m lost again
in a sea of assumptions
afloat on a timeless journey
neither tired nor alert
but perfectly at ease

oh my captain
long abandoned ship
surrendering in theory
in a bloodless coup
now subject to discovery

amid so many
I’ve never felt so lonely
going about my daily routine
in quiet contemplation
in search of land or my lord





may two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , | Leave a comment
10 May 2019
6 Comments

counter-revolutionary


the mood of the nation
weighs heavily on my mind

even though I’ve always had
my very own secret getaways
this time it feels different
as if there’s no place to hide

[getting ready for bed I take two
hail marys and one full-strength aspirin]

blood orange moon shines
brightly through bedroom window
its imperfections leaking through

sitting all alone in the dark
the house breathes quietly like me
a witness to my own transgressions

there was a time I would escape
for the sake of escaping
disappearing for days on end

but now that the mood of the nation
weighs heavily on my mind
this inherent flight to safety
is suddenly sparked by fear





may two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry, War Poems and tagged , ,
09 May 2019

sunday gospel brunch


I saw you at a distance
light on your feet
and hovering like an angel
various laughter rising and falling
a bloody mary in your hand

I had just attended mass
having arrived an hour early
hopeful of resolving all of my
impossible transgressions

I shouldn’t have taken
the long way home
no less stroll past
sunday gospel brunch
where the atmosphere I hear
will bring back sweet memories





may two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in In the City, Poetry and tagged , | Leave a comment
08 May 2019
6 Comments

there’s talk on the street


he was the new kid
everyone has at least one
in their lifetime

wide-eyed and outgoing
or mysteriously shy
people want to know more
like what circumstances
brought her here

maybe he’s not really a kid
but rather some unfamiliar idea
walking confidently down main street
sun stretching her shadow
further than anyone else

some say this town isn’t ready
for someone like him
stealing their thoughts and
rearranging them without
anyone noticing

oh yes she was the new kid
and everyone wanted to love her
like one of their very own





may two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in In the City, Poetry and tagged , ,
07 May 2019
3 Comments

newly found friends


I’ve been looking forward to nightfall of late
the daily routine having taken its toll
on this otherwise creative mind

it’s as if I’ve been beckoned by a shaman
or bitten by some magical practitioner’s bug
either promising to fly me over fields of fertility
long held sacred through the end of time

in the dead of the night good-natured fairies
pull me from my deep dark slumber
casting before my eyes colors I’ve not known
while unfolding even further possibilities





may two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , ,
06 May 2019

present day preoccupations


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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , | Leave a comment
05 May 2019
2 Comments

repairing what may be broken


she swore she would give it all up
the interconnectedness
of a fragmented world
projected in tid bits & slices of emotion
that somehow a third eye
is supposed to make whole

nobody believed she could achieve
such an improbable feat
after so many autobiographical
ups and downs of words and images
projected seemingly effortlessly
for all the world to love

how she managed to give it all up
remains a mystery of
counterintuitive discretion
leaving a stunned majority who once
thought they knew her so well
with unanswerable questions





may two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged ,
04 May 2019
4 Comments

on the border


forget about green grass
the reality of the unknown suggests
the light is always brighter
on the other side

in a subconscious world
blind worship has no meaning
for the gods of yesterday
have lost their potential

looking back in time
you may find contrasting diversity
stretching the definition
of limitless boundary





may two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged ,
03 May 2019
7 Comments

singing to the choir


press your ear
against the wall of shame
and tell me what you hear

father stopped
taking confessions at noon
so if you want to lighten
your load yet today
you’ll have to wait until
the wine has been blessed

in the courtyard
there is much chatter
in the fruit trees
but they’d be happy to
stop and listen
if you have something to say

a three legged cat
guards the perimeter
with quiet enthusiasm
while headless squirrels
and widowed cardinals
come and go at their leisure





may two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Animals, Poetry and tagged ,
02 May 2019
4 Comments

psychic connections notwithstanding


there are countless stars on the vaulted ceiling
visible only on cloudless nights

although unnoticeable to the naked eye
planets orbit each and every one of them

I often find myself lying down and pointing upwards
giving them names
and pondering
which ones are more likely to support life
as we know it

unlike this place I call home
none of these apples are at war with themselves
which is why I easily connect with them
as a most welcomed alien





may two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Aliens, Poetry and tagged , ,

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