there must be something
in the rainwater
how else could you explain
the dumbing of
america
political distractions
overshadowing
deeper concerns
in the skies & seas
regional wars
and mass murders
as commonplace as NFL
passes and
baseball in October
fans in the stands
staring into the palms
of their hands
pretending
to be informed
as the storms rage on
october two thousand twenty-four
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
political violence seeps into
our children’s dreams
concealed as spiders
& snakes
—when they awaken
talk of wounding & maiming
enter their mainstream conscious
even killing
if that’s what it has to
come down to
september two thousand twenty-four
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
Heaven is comfort, but it’s still not living.
― Alice Sebold, The Lovely Bones
I was working on a lullaby
right around midnight
searching for words that rhyme with
worms & undercover
They say the funnel cloud
sounds like a fast approaching locomotive
but it’s nothing more than a mere dream
when a child is fast asleep
If you ever tore anything to pieces
with your own bare hands
you might have an appreciation for
the reality of true brute force
may two thousand twenty-four
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
I shot the Messiah
or someone who looked like him
right there in broad daylight
outside the bath
where there were many witnesses
Word quickly spread
that I shot the Messiah
right there in broad daylight
so many of the witnesses in shock & awe
pointing their fingers at me
When I dropped the revolver
it landed in such a way
the chamber opened & bullets escaped
the witnesses mesmerized & questioning
why I shot the Messiah
The whole scene was surreal
like in a Clint Eastwood spaghetti western
the Messiah shot but not dead
the witnesses adamantly begging him
to save himself
february two thousand twenty-four
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
rumor has it
they’re blowing
everything up
one block at a time
nobody believes it though
claiming they don’t
have the resources
—that it’s all talk
the curtain
slightly adjusted
one eye peers out the window
shadowy figures
darting from door to door
checking the locks
& leaving pamphlets
for now the neighborhood
is safe
but has never
been any scarier
october two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
splintered & in many parts
broken
this place will never be the same
jokers pretending to be leaders
unconcerned
w/wants & needs
other than their own
market after dark
is alive & well on a friday night
city blocks partitioned off
swarms of ethnicities
circulating
innocently commingling
the far majority like innocent lambs
though a number carrying
it doesn’t have to be like this
social gatherings becoming
bloodbaths
microphones in the city square
politicians
displaying their wares
stoking fear & discontent
august two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
he’s gonna be a millionaire
simply by breaking the law
revenge is a powerful tool
especially when used by a fool
releasing the attack dog
after the subject’s surrender
july two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
it’s evening
and everything is still
as if the earth has stopped spinning
the clouds in the sky don’t move
the water falling
down the rocks
makes not a sound
or if it does
is drowned out
by noisy high flyers
some of them are drones
others real wildlife
the former surveilling and well-
equipped
with all kinds of weaponry
the latter
doing their part
by participating in the
natural selection of order
in the suburbs
ordinary people are cleaning their guns
while in the inner city
a not-so-silent war [of sorts]
rages on
june two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
having the right to remain silent
perhaps is exactly what
the powers that be
actually want
here in america
the silent majority is stocking up
while the insane minority
continues rampaging
on an ongoing basis
the rise in inflation
is not slowing down sales
of smith & wessons
neither is it preventing the poor
from getting poorer
here in america
human rights
& civil rights
have taken a back seat
to electric vehicles
the gas-powered ones
converted into mobile homes
or turreted weapons
april two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
plastic or aluminum
in any shape or form
the various guns
these little ones carry
are temporarily bulletless
[at least for the moment]
like a thumb & forefinger
positioned & poised
in some stylish manner
—they later find
themselves safely abed
curled into the fetal position
warmly dreaming of
pistols at dawn
april two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
the weather outside is frightful
like political destruction
taking out pristinely bountiful fields
& architecturally stunning cities
unheard of humans stirring up
a boiling pot of take this
machine gun tornadoes
nuclear-powered hurricanes
trigger finger earthquakes
destroy & rebuild
displace & replace
mass murders
mass graves
what kind of economy is this
what kind of human history is this
to keep handing down
february two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
the man on the street
carries a sign reading
the end is near
his hair past his shoulders
his beard twice as long
he is the living & breathing
symbol of the apocalypse
advertising what everyone knows
another mugging gone wrong
another massacre in a makeshift church
another death row inmate executed
by way of lethal injection
all examples actually disproving
what the canvassing prophet believes
february two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
we are awful villains
and we know it
—animal instincts
as brutal as any
species on earth
kill and conquer
all along the way
rock & roll blaring
only to enhance
the effectiveness
new genres sprout
generationally
giving a voice
to the those silenced
by inhumane ways
february two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
there is a disconnect
between sublime living
and the reality of the day
so much so
even the planes
and helicopters overhead
produce background music
execution style killings
by thugs & gangs
are just as commonplace
as walks in the park
mother & daughter & child
enjoying the sunshine
unsuspectedly
in the marketplace
a man sells as is avocados
turning pennies into dollars
cross-training his
only surviving child
working & maintaining
chasing down their dream
february two thousand twenty-three
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
I fail to understand how I sleep at night
Where have you been dear sanity
and why do you evade my
quietest moments
This talking to someone
I fear whom may or may not exist
has been weighing
Heavily on the wrong side
of conscious thought
insistent on killing the enemy
Likely existing from within
a simple & delicate psyche
(in)capable of triggering
This insistence of wielding
instruments of creation
over the inevitable
december two thousand twenty-two
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
the problem with the world today
we’re living in the past
like a smoker who can’t kick the habit
we’re unable to quit killing
whether sanctioned by allegedly legitimate
power brokers
or straight up civilian violence
when I was a kid we played
cowboys & indians
cops & robbers
doctor & nurse
role playing because we were left
to our devices
and our parents bought us weaponry
and any kind of idol we would ask for
on sundays we were reminded how evil
we truly were
and twice or maybe three times a year
we were forgiven all our sins
come monday however
we were right back at it
perpetuating the only thing that made sense
july two thousand twenty-two
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
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