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poetry by j matthew waters

Archive for the tag “Poetry”

24 Dec 2023
2 Comments

on christmas eve


there’s no cause for celebration
when the old man dies

it was his turn the young woman
tries to explain to her child

it’s a surprise there is any celebration
this year let alone any year

outside there is strange activity
as if the infantry
is parachuting over rooftops
flashlights in tow

down below in musty cellars
ordinary citizens
are locking & loading
praying the outside forces
have come in peace





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

Posted in Poetry, War Poems and tagged , , ,
23 Dec 2023
1 Comment

the accident


the cat is creeping in the house
though I’ve no idea where he is

I’ve sequestered myself
in a room w/three glass walls
fully draped in snow-white blinds
—the fourth wall painted charcoal
the only door a two-way mirror

fog has somehow entered this place
seeping in through cracks & crevices
concealing the cat suspected
of sauntering by

I turn on the ceiling fans remotely
the fog quickly & soundlessly dissipating
the cat’s distressing meowing
a reminder of the ambulance’s siren
still ringing in my ear





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

Posted in Animals, Poetry and tagged , , ,
22 Dec 2023

do it yourself


at walmart the jump rope
sells for sixteen bucks

on youtube
you’ll find various ways
to make your own

just to be clear
the ones in the video will cost
just as much
as the one from walmart

but in the final analysis
yours will be worth
much much more





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
21 Dec 2023
2 Comments

unforgiven for now


there are those unafraid to die
conditioned to care less
about their own body
than other worldly matters
—such as rescuing the distressed
from imminent death
or dying for the sins of others

nothing is really forgotten here
but rather passes on
from various transgressions to the next
eerily similar to ground wars
lasting thousands of years





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

Posted in History, Poetry, War Poems and tagged , , ,
20 Dec 2023
6 Comments

misunderstood


I remember as a child
probably four-years old
walking about the property
making up song lyrics ad lib
singing them out loud as the
words popped into my head

from what I remember
they were ballads
words of sorrow & grief
verses hard for me to fathom
following a melody I must
have picked up from a prior life

I imagine the neighbors
who happened to walk by
must have found me strange
—and though I had known
they were there all along
I pretended like I didn’t





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , ,
19 Dec 2023

creature of the night


what’s become of the deep dark state
that once help my grasp

a sort of given of a blacking out
for predictable periods of nightly reverie

once upon a time the creature of the night
dwelled in my dreams

today it’s a physical reality
scratching at the window like the wind

or like a raven tight walking the sill
indecisive in its next move

I am between subconsciousness & light
unafraid but frozen

I blink my eyes in a sort of morse code

the bird is unable to interpret
pacing back & forth

its eyes locked onto mine
as the latter flicker until the light of day

only then off it flies until the next affair





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

Posted in Birds, Dreams, Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
18 Dec 2023

a cryptic celebration


on winter break
abominable snowmen
(dressed as warlocks)
come down from the mountains
and participate
in the annual festivities

at this time of year
they’re feared not by the locals
especially the children
who marvel at their wizardry
—one by one pleading
to be next





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

Posted in Animals, Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
17 Dec 2023

nightshift


listless like a lemon tree
on a cool winter day
a little lonesome dove
sings her sad sad song

behind darkish clouds
a blue sky is hiding
the lonesome dove
wishes to change her tune

evening segues into night
now the moon is hiding
the little lonesome dove
longs to be a snowy owl





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

Posted in Birds, Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
16 Dec 2023

collection


this little glass mason jar
begins with nothing

a small seashell
and a little smooth stone

rubbing between thumb
and forefinger
make a wish
anything is possible

the sun rises the moon sets
it’s another day
in what used to be paradise

forget-me-nots
bloom every other year
dark-eyed juncos
returning every late november

in the little glass mason jar
a feather & a tell
discovered halfway up the hill

deeper inside
in the center of the earth
a new journey begins





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment
15 Dec 2023
6 Comments

nonstop deliveries


news arrives via various devices
streaming by way of satellite & wire & clouds
explosions of information
bombarding the masses
like bombs of war
by 10:00 am enough is enough
and one by one the various devices
are powered down
or rebooted
the silence of the day deafening
like disturbing echos
reverberating throughout mind & body





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

Posted in Poetry, War Poems and tagged , , ,
14 Dec 2023

Imprisoned


Feet of snow grows colder by the day
Rays of the sun reflecting brightly but
Powerless — like a King
Locked inside the winter palace
Impenetrable until the February thaw

Summer drought spoiled the harvest
A taste of regret left on the tongue
The King calling upon his God
To protect and provide
—What fortunes await come Spring





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

Posted in Micropoetry, Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
13 Dec 2023
4 Comments

developing stories


watching the evening news
is an old habit I’ve yet to break

I get what’s going on
no thanks to the world wide web
a constant feed linking me
to all corners of the world
as if I actually live & breathe
the air I’ve come to witness

I understand the moon
is not the same
above war-torn populations
shedding pieces of itself
like fireflies from heaven
hoping to be captured
by boys & girls
with & without homes





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

Posted in Poetry, War Poems and tagged , , ,
12 Dec 2023
6 Comments

breakfast in my happy place


I’ve been stacking bricks
in my sleep
a sort of chimney without a roof
reminding me of things
left undone

in the middle of the night
I sleepwalk to the bathroom & back
having pissed
and flossed my teeth

the funeral for the dead
will resume at eleven o’clock
but I’ve already decided
not to go this time

instead I make eggs benedict
in the galley kitchen
a favorite of a certain someone
I used to know





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , ,
11 Dec 2023
2 Comments

parasomnia


I’m sorry if I freaked you out
I really didn’t want to go there

and how I got there in the first place
is beyond anyone’s imagination
I mean really
driving while sleeping
—who the hell does that

by the time the cock crowed
I was fast asleep in my bed
beside me an acting award
that belonged to you

and you
just like my car
were nowhere to be found





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , ,
10 Dec 2023

sleepover


pressure on the outside
attempting to penetrate the interior
attracted by taper candles
attended to by dreamers

on the inside these adolescents
play with newly found magic
handed down through generations
—unwritten instructions
calling upon the dead
hoping to satisfy their curiosities

ouija board & incantations
are only the beginning
sulfur & ash permeating the air
the responsive spirits
dressed as inmates
& carnival freaks
slipping through the cracks
fully capable of scaring them
right out of their skin





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
09 Dec 2023

one by one I lost them all


I had them all to myself
but then I lost them
a half-dozen helium-filled balloons
each a different color
I had plucked one by one
from the giving tree
in the city square

and I as I stood there
looking upward
counting them
with my index finger
a tear lost for each one
drifting higher & higher
until I became alone again





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

Posted in In the City, Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment

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