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poetry by j matthew waters

Archive for the tag “Poetry”

20 Jun 2016
2 Comments

changing course to calico


we went to the coast to relax
but the ocean turned angry
chasing us back towards bakersfield
on route fifty-eight

somewhere along the way
we stopped for coffee and gas
highway bandits lifting the surfboards
before we received our change

(none of the cellular towers
seemed to be operable
many of them laying horizontal
between barren oil fields)

the clouds above were filled with
rain refusing to confess
lightning and thunder merely
static racing through the speakers

stoned boys in back suggested
we change our course to calico
where they said the honky-tonk there
was certain to change our luck



june two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , ,
19 Jun 2016
4 Comments

may the poetry gods be with you


we don’t like to talk about the process
don’t want to give away anything
just in case it might be worth
something one day

trying to keep up with the joneses
is a no-win situation given they
rarely rely upon sleep or fortune
to achieve immortality

there are so many words that rhyme
with love and nature and
peace be with you
yet there seem to be much fewer ways
to make hatred and violence
obsolete in this day and age



june two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , ,
16 Jun 2016
2 Comments

deep six rising


I drifted along ancient streets
where good men once
negotiated fairly
where scholars texted
freely on sacred scrolls buried
deep beneath the rubble

inside the botanical gardens
the master rarely sleeps
preaching peace and
nurturing the disadvantaged
by means seen and unseen

it’s as if the city never vanished
neither conquered nor
destroyed by unnatural forces
as if the voices weeping
beneath the surface
would never rise again



june two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in In the City, Poetry and tagged , ,
13 Jun 2016

emerald green are the waters


jesus wasn’t with us that day
we caught all the shrimp
he was inland teaching the little ones
how to set their sights

the wind was friendly that day
and by the time we pulled in
the sublime sun reflected off
limp sails onto gentle wakes

in the evening we all gathered
eating & drinking & listening
to all the old stories
the ones certain to be retold
rewritten for centuries to come




Photograph by Catherine Grosskopf (click to enlarge)


june two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Fishing, Poetry and tagged , | Leave a comment
12 Jun 2016
8 Comments

living and dying in peace

I

she gave birth to a fatherless
child on a moonless night
the kind of night where the
cries of the wild played
havoc with the sciatica nerve

II

she was born the color blue
growing up in a neighborhood
best described as positioned
on the fringes
where mail deliveries were often
postponed and religious
ideologies were seldom expressed

as previously mentioned
she never knew her father
though she had an idea
he may have been blue himself
taken away from this world
prematurely due to
hatred and bigotry
i.e.: senselessness

(after surpassing adolescence
she begged her mother to give in)

holding back tears her mother
explained how he was the most
peaceful man to walk amongst the
most misinformed people

III

as the years passed she learned
to accept all that is blue
embracing the uniqueness
that was all her own
perplexed why her father
was shot down in cold blood
while she was allowed
to live and die in peace


june two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged ,
11 Jun 2016
8 Comments

drifting toward the omega


there is silence in the streets
a serene silence
an incomprehensible silence

there are children drifting
in the streets
war-torn children
holding hands and drifting
toward an unknown destination

the fear in their eyes
no longer exists
has been replaced
by a kind of nothingness
this world has ever seen

there are no communications
of any kind
no devices capable of
broadcasting
the deafening silence

and as far as the children
are concerned
they have collectively discerned
peace should never
be made in such ways


june two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry, War Poems and tagged , ,
10 Jun 2016
4 Comments

over the river thames


she asked me if I was comfortable
and I said that I was
despite my face stuck against
mechanical looking glasses

which one is clearer she went on to say
one or two
and I answered one

she turned one of the lenses and asked again
and again my answer was number one

as I continued to answer her questions
without thinking
I wondered what in the world
we were doing here
and instead of saying one or two
or three of four
or would you remind repeating the question
por favor
I should have said
I would be happy to give you some
honest answers
over a glass of wine
sitting at a table for two
overlooking the river thames


june two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , ,
09 Jun 2016
9 Comments

if I don’t see you tonight


it’s just that my imagination is not
what it used to be
ever since the world started
picking up speed
somewhere near the turn of the century
and I found myself growing a tail
I didn’t know I was supposed to chase

a decade later I chopped it off
realizing how stupid it looked
on a man my age
instead took to the streets
falling in love with ideas
I couldn’t wrap my arms around

since money was no object I
experimented with synthetic drugs
that led to little red corvettes
the kind that went 100 miles per hour
by simply putting your foot down

come morning I would be surprised
to find the rising sun
encouraging me to brew some green tea
and swallow vitamins and minerals
that were supposed to keep me young

soon thereafter I would hit the bricks
waving goodbye one last time
telling anyone and everyone in my wake
if I don’t see you tonight
I’ll see you in saint louie


june two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , ,
07 Jun 2016
6 Comments

street lamps and destinations


I am drawn to that which is beautiful
like the moth to the light

the pursuit goes on from lifetime
to lifetime
from one century to the next
and yet
there are distinct hesitations
throughout these forward progressions
allowing time to question
whether or not
you have seen these faces before

I saw you just the other day
but I was quite certain you had changed
and though I couldn’t remember your name
you called out mine
as if we were long-lost friends

I looked at you with puzzled eyes
and flashed an awkward smile
an artificial light appearing out of nowhere
telling me it’s time to move on


june two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , ,
06 Jun 2016
6 Comments

Ciudad de México

My original poem translated into Spanish & recited by Lina Ru

Hasta la fecha siguen dispersos
pedazos de mi pasado
en el Valle de México
consumidas en la tibia y suave arcilla

Cuando tú dijiste que no me amabas
a la distancia
tres veces cayó un rayo
presagiando lágrimas de un amorío triste

En la Cuidad de México permanecí
por años sin fin
tomando las calles
sonriendo y riendo y disfrutando
la compañía
de gente compasiva
aceptando el arte y música
y lenguaje e historia como mía
viviendo la mentira de que mi corazón
nunca había sido roto



Please visit Lina Ru’s beautiful poetry at her creative website LinaRu.com

View the original English version by clicking here


june two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters & lina ru
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , , ,
05 Jun 2016
3 Comments

seeking perfection from within


there is nothing new under the sun
though I continue to search for the
glory of the coming of perfection

throughout the journey there are
wind chimes offering clues where
perfection may be resting
wind chimes made from bamboo to glass
from copper to crystal to sterling silver

the wind will you show the way
is what I thought they conveyed
but it was the nearby stream
that actually whispered to me

do not be lonely here on this earth
is what I thought I heard between
the chimes and the water’s flow
do not be sad the voice went on to say
for you see
the perfection you seek
can be found
by simply closing your eyes


june two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Nature, Poetry and tagged , ,
04 Jun 2016
2 Comments

hitching a ride back home


there is magic in the fields
you can feel it
a sort of cosmic energy
forced upon the earth from
unknown galaxies

far away from city lights
alien forces
settle in peaceful places
careful not to disturb
the natural order of things

I didn’t choose to be cast
away from perfection
but I’m thankful to be back
after traveling ninety trillion
and one hundred miles


june two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Aliens, Nature, Poetry and tagged , , ,
03 Jun 2016
2 Comments

maybe someday maybe tomorrow


magnets inside bracelets
pressed against my skin
work their magic so I may
rise to the next occasion

ankles locked in shackles
keeping me grounded
green field of four-leaf clovers
shuffling to the dead man’s beat

sharpened sickle in one hand
club in the other
paving new ways for the man
hollering from the tower

locked inside precious dreams
all I do is count
day and night do not exist
prisoners of love move on


june two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , ,
31 May 2016
8 Comments

like those who matter most


water washes away the past
cleanses if you will
like the dirt you once kicked
down dusty fields

sometimes you mixed the dirt
with water
and turned them into clay animals
set them strategically in the open
only to hunt them down in the dead of night
switchblade at your side
the full moon your flashlight

so many years later the rains fell so hard
gushing down the hill
penetrating your fortress walls
filling the boxes
where you stored many other
surreal adventures
untouched for decades

you cried for days
having thought you lost
the imagination of your past
only to remember
what was lost can one day be restored
like the lives of those who matter most


may two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , ,
30 May 2016
3 Comments

aspiring to the romantics


there’s a poem I’ve been meaning
to write
wading in the back of my mind
has completed itself so many times
in reveries I don’t remember

I recall the color of your eyes
gift wrapped
and full of surprises
how they came to me
unexpectedly in a dream
now etched as a mere memory

there is always room for romance
or so the poets taught me
as long as it comes naturally
for pursuing the unattainable
is no longer an option
not as long as your one true love
has regrettably since moved on


may two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Dreams, Poetry and tagged , ,
29 May 2016
7 Comments

the moon you know is no longer mine


it’s hard for me to imagine
I’ve moved on these past few seconds
but in reality was so many moons ago

if only you had an idea
what I’ve gone through
to make it to the other side
you would easily understand
how precious are the wormholes

when I said I was good to go
that was a lie
but now that I’m gone
I’m happy to report
there is something seriously happy
happening on the other side


may two thousand sixteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , ,

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