jdubqca

poetry by j matthew waters

Archive for the tag “resilience”

20 May 2025
3 Comments

Maybe I’ll see you at church next Tuesday


For a certain ritual
a small amount of my own blood
is required—how would you propose
I collect it

I’ve been working on my shadow effects
learning how to scare myself in case
my heartbeat gets any lower

With a little more work
soon I’ll be able to see better in the dark

The sun doesn’t shine anymore
a true exaggeration like an all night rain
keeping me depressed

Some questions shouldn’t have to be asked
the more rhetorical the better—
like do you want me to stay

Go ahead and leave me forever
acting as if forgiveness
isn’t even a thing anymore





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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , ,
17 Apr 2025

heading due north


the fire’s under control
but there’s nothing
left to eat

we move on
it’s a routine thing

we spent the winter
inside a mountain
the waters echoing
deep below
a reminder
there’s always a way out

word has it the sun
is expected to reappear
any day now
but who the hell really knows

in the meantime
we keep heading true north





april two thousand twenty-five
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
08 Apr 2025
3 Comments

on the art of falling down


we met at a seminar
on the art of falling down

her name was soda pop
but she preferred cola

she was the kind of gal
who could easily fit into
the american idiot album

I had a feeling she loved green day

her techniques impressed me
a clear indication that this
wasn’t her first rodeo

noticing I was struggling
she hissed & gave me a wink

as if to say look old boy
just be like a bendable straw


april two thousand twenty-five
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , ,
24 Mar 2025

carrying on


it’s not a matter of what you think
you deserve or don’t deserve

or whether or not everything is
fair in love & war

or if karma is only something
that’s imagined

oh no at this stage the only thing
that seems to matter

is how you’ll carry on once everything
you ever cared about

has been systematically taken
away from you


march two thousand twenty-five
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , , | Leave a comment
05 Feb 2025
3 Comments

the power of prayer


in the absence of the sun
we keep warm in ways
never before imagined

keeping the fire going overnight
requires non-stop singing
and caffeinated beverages

come daybreak the village collectively
participates in the power of prayer
believing that by doing so
one day the sun-god will return
to its once prominent glory


february two thousand twenty-five
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , ,
01 Dec 2024

White-fronted Pantoum


Out of the blue winter arrives unannounced
a flock of geese aided by northwest winds

settling on a lake locked inside no man’s land
far away from any civilian populations

a flock of geese aided by northwest winds
covering over one thousand miles

far away from any civilian populations
migrating loudly & seemingly effortless

covering over one thousand miles
unaffected by the plummeting temperatures

migrating loudly & seemingly effortless
over forest & mountain & open plain

unaffected by the plummeting temperatures
out of the blue winter arrives unannounced

over forest & mountain & open plain
settling on a lake locked inside no man’s land


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

Posted in Birds, Nature, Poetry and tagged , , , , | Leave a comment
19 Nov 2024
2 Comments

going blind


I couldn’t see the keyboard
anymore
couldn’t read it
with my fingertips
but at least I still had a voice
and the wherewithal
to get the party started


november two thousand twenty-four
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Micropoetry, Poetry and tagged , , ,
16 Oct 2024

as if there is no tomorrow


the powers that be
are upon us

they cast spells
on the ones without eyes
incantations
for wayward souls….

there is no awakening
for those
who cannot sleep

for their days are filled
with promises
impossible
to be kept

yet they move forward
chasing death
with great abandon
as if there is ever
any tomorrow


october two thousand twenty-four
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
13 Oct 2024
2 Comments

Radiation Queen


The King says she’s mad at the world
but chances are it’s just him

Afterall how much ego can one take
after decades of conditioning
how much strength can you muster
as your body continues
to betray you

He says she’s mad at the world
but when I visited her
she was telling stories
& laughing
sometimes at herself
sometimes at friends dead or alive
but most times at a world
continually testing her resolve


october two thousand twenty-four
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , ,
27 Jan 2024

lucky to be alive


eyes open
unsure what day it is
shouldn’t take long to solve
what with living in the digital age

late January
sun unseen for days
hijacked by rising temperatures
having chased away the polar vortex

a mad dash
or maybe a marathon
depends who survived the night
counting heads at the breakfast table

early March
the world still at war
looking out the kitchen window
kids play dodgeball in an old minefield





january two thousand twenty-four
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry, War Poems and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
21 Jan 2024
4 Comments

preternatural


autumn came & went hastily
chasing shadow-like ghosts
into the night
retreating into the dead of winter

once underground
the air became tolerable
inner workings quietly expanding
like a spiderweb in the rafters

the first signs of spring
would arrive later than usual
the missiles & the drones
silencing bird calls
canceling once promising rains





january two thousand twenty-four
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry, War Poems and tagged , , ,
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
27 Aug 2023

unshakable


I can’t seem to shake her
anywhere I go
by land or by air or by sea
always on my tail
like a puppy or a shadow
an unshakable soul

I am rarely lost
but often found
hanging out at the shoreline
breathing in the promise
of an unmistakable
tomorrow

come morning you will be here
like a blue moon
in the making
once upon a time thin
as a wafer
relentless & unwavering





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

Posted in Nature, Poetry and tagged , , , , | Leave a comment
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
20 Dec 2013
4 Comments

building blocks and dreams


we worked the wet sand
into old world castles
restarting aqueducts and
protecting the bridge with
toy soldiers

overnight tides washed
away recent memory
giving way to daybreak
and the innocence of
virgin beaches

starting from scratch
we sawed and
sanded and hammered away
convincing ourselves
things will be different



december two thousand thirteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Dreams, Poetry and tagged , , , , , , ,

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