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poetry by j matthew waters

Archive for the tag “revolution”

24 Jul 2022

revolution


Don’t you know
Talking about a revolution?
It sounds like a whisper
          — Tracy Chapman

it’s already here
don’t you feel your life
dramatically changing
what little wealth
you may have possessed
gone like a whisper

don’t you know
everyone is running
running away
from reality
don’t you know
they’re talking about
a revolution

it’s not too late
to turn the tables
to get out while the
getting’s good
jumping ship or
leaving the welfare lines
before it’s too late





july two thousand twenty-two
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in In the City, Poetry and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
18 Apr 2021
4 Comments

after the verdict


we’re doing something
different today
but you shouldn’t have
a problem with that

the city is already boiling over
and by nightfall
it won’t be safe at all

we’ve got no time
to board up the main floor windows
we’ll pack a bag
and take some valuables
and pray for our
eventual return

some say there is safety
in numbers
but this time
that’s the exact definition
to an exception to the rule




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

Posted in In the City, Poetry and tagged , ,
14 Apr 2021
2 Comments

enlisting lost souls & free spirits


what are you doing
trying to save the world
with mere words

we seem to have broken
the language barrier
which only proves that man
has a listening problem

and then of course
there is history itself
repeating like any metaphor
you wish to use

the world needs saving
but all we seem to do
is point & pull the trigger

there is no question
that cities will burn
the question becoming
how high the count
until the next tipping point




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

Posted in In the City, Poetry and tagged , ,
11 Jan 2021
2 Comments

Transitory revolution


It turns on all by itself
Sony transistor radio
AA batteries at half life
a receiver for the dead
reaching out to me
via Rock 108

It’s a call to arms
the messages repeating
the background music
easily overpowered
I rise to my feet
committing to the cause

It’s a matter of time
Rome will soon be burning
the power of the radio
awakening me
enabling me to see God
in a totally different light




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

Posted in Poetry and tagged , ,
30 Jul 2020
2 Comments

extraordinary phenomena


there are faces on the mountains
put there by an alien race
long before the enlightenment
when men thought they were gods
and decided for themselves
who shall live & who shall die

the mountains are so much more
than a moveable force
and like all earthly things
will rise & fall & rise again
whether by natural phenomena
or extraordinary revolutions




july two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , ,
03 Jul 2019
2 Comments

on the streets of san francisco


I’ve been listening to the revolution
evolving on the radio
emergency broadcast system
reporting prisoners on the loose
and exotic birds taking flight

meanwhile tiny soldiers steal
from local food banks
exchanging day-old bread
for water and ammunition
on the corner of oak and divisadero




july two thousand nineteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , ,
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 , ,
29 Jan 2017
2 Comments

letting sleeping dogs lie


sleeping dogs twitch and simmer
growling in their dreams
guarding gates leading to salvation

this promised land no longer
glows with hope
its torch once a welcoming beacon
burns violently
out of control winds
swirling in a harbor of hate

sleeping dogs shake violently
unleashing chokeholds
exposing incisors and canines
keeping freedoms at bay
promising to tear into the fabric
of a once selfless nation

sleeping dogs twitch and simmer
growling in their dreams
guarding gates leading to salvation



january two thousand seventeen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , ,
01 Aug 2015
4 Comments

Revolutionary béisbol


They put Castro on waivers and
brought up his little nephew
to replace him
but only trouble is
neither could manage
to hit their weight

Last time the southsiders came
to town they filled the seats
and then some
even the Hilton across the street
was brimming with Americans in
balconies drinking Bucaneros
and smoking Cubans

But back home things were different
for this makeshift
patched together band of brothers
and if they have visions
of putting together a postseason run
it’ll never happen without
reigniting their fan base
desperate for a full-blown
revolutionary assault
including nickel hot dogs
and peso beer nights





august two thousand fifteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Baseball, 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 , , , ,
01 Jan 2014
2 Comments

new year revolution


we went underground with new people
the ones we always wanted
to hang with
but never configured coordinates
exactly right

smuggling firearms and ammunition
inside gift-wrapped packages
we took off
on one-way interstellar flights
prospecting peace

a new revolution bravely speaks
against centuries of hate
taking off
with old ideas in real-time practice
to change the world


january two thousand fourteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , , ,
19 Oct 2013
2 Comments

revolution number nine


row after row of desktop
computers play leapfrog in a
pentagon controlled pole barn

outside angry peasants wave
baseball bats and throw
expletives at robotic guards

as night collapsed into chaos
revolutionaries trade flashlights
for burning man torches

lights darting above oversee
armed forces hellbent on
accelerating the tipping point

morning fog surrenders to man
and his drum machines
moving on to the next outpost


october two thousand thirteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

Posted in Poetry, War Poems and tagged , , , , , ,
06 Apr 2013
10 Comments

the chocolate revolution


there’s a revolution brewing
and it’s going to be loud
and dangerous and downright
unintellectual for so many

old women stand in long lines
buying magazines for their men
while inside dogs stay huddled
behind yet intact furniture

unrecruited men and boys
hide behind alleyways
reading the latest reports
from handheld devices

a voice from the loudspeaker
claiming to be the answer
promises free tickets to paradise
and chocolate for everyone


april two thousand thirteen
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved

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

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