in the middle

you lit the candle at both ends
and wait there in the middle
to see which wick burns sprier
while thick wax forms its puddle

you're hoping it goes one way
it may just go the other
then you're left with just a mess
no candle to light your path

Poetry by M.J.B. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License

finding your way

you said that you weren't ready
had to go find your way
you said you're becoming a stranger
didn't recognize your own face
you looked back over your shoulder
gave me a little smile
you said it might take a minute
or it could take a good long while

I released my hand hold
like a bird, set you free
to see if you could find it
yourself and what you need
it took longer than a moment
you've been gone for quite some time
I don't know if you have found it
what you searched for that wasn't mine

I couldn't get close to your spirit
inside that shroud you bear
I couldn't fix you, couldn't save you
but I tried--laying my heart bare
in the breeze you're still soaring
looking for that place to land
and in my dreams I'm crying
over what we'll never have

Poetry by M.J.B. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License

just a girl

I know I was not the one to set your heart on fire
infatuation lays in dust with days long since expired
I wasn't close to being the dream you wanted to come true
I'm just a girl who long ago fell deeply in love with you

I'm not the key that fits the lock and opens up a door
I didn't have the power to give all you wanted and more
there was just no miracle or wishes upon a star
I'm the one in the rear view mirror, when you drove off in your car

when you look back and wonder if you had gone that way
will you see the promises of what you held at bay
I wasn't close to being the dream you wanted to come true
I'm just a girl who long ago fell deeply in love with you

Poetry by M.J.B. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License

dreams

when the dream becomes reality
and the reality like a dream
when the fire catches and ignites
but is much more extreme

the moon breaks through the scattered clouds
the wind is pushing the colors of fall
a galaxy of stars surround
as love takes memory in it all

closed eyes open, my heart pounds
it's all in the scheme of things
when the dream becomes reality
and the reality like a dream

Poetry by M.J.B. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License

songs

guilt doesn't weigh you down it seems
from the love songs we didn't sing
at night you sleep a reverent sleep
miles away, I toss and don't dream

you warmed yourself next to my fire
passion burning hotter and higher
every minute of every sweet hour
I thought that it would never expire

all of these things that I forgive
from the start when you drew me in
Grace absolves you from all sin
the songs I keep and hold within

Poetry by M.J.B. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License

fire

stoke this fire
that continues to burn
with every dance
with every word
keep it hot
let the embers fly
igniting all
that is close by
dance near my flame
touch this heat
keep it burning
feed this need

Poetry by M.J.B. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License

love songs not sang

guilt doesn't weigh you down it seems
from  all the love songs we didn't sing
at night you sleep a reverent sleep
miles away, I toss and don't dream

you warmed yourself next to my fire
passion burning hotter and higher
every minute of every sweet hour
I thought that it would never expire

all of these things that I forgive
from the start when you drew me in
Grace absolves you from all sin
the songs I keep and hold within

Poetry by M.J.B. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License

it all has a price

everything costs, it all has a price
what's posted as free, is not that at all
the smorgasbord feast, can fill you right up
gestational quality?? yeah, not so much

the poverty stricken with cups for some change
standing on street corners out in the rain
at the end of the day they have nothing to show
and the stipend isn't enough to fuel what they know

the boxes in the alley in which they call home
not filtering heat or the winter's snow
all is not what it once seemed to be
they hide in the darkness to cover their needs

once they were families with a lifetime to gain
before the bi-polar and all of the pain
the burned out cars and fires in barrels
that warm their spirits but not their perils

backs are turned on what is endured
the government abhors all they stand for
we can't feed our people while dumping the oil
it all stays in trash bags as excess and spoil

Poetry by M.J.B. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License

skies of blue

one last look, at the past as it drifts
across the mountains into the sea of rifts
no safety nets or easy rides
on the wave of life or ocean tide

I meant every word, played every part
the stars in the sky that blinded my heart
I wouldn't change even one little thing
what heartaches fall and memories bring

I look in the mirror and face the fears
was it just a moment or many a year
as I lose track of what it means
tears fall fast from eyes of green

I write my messages on your wall
the comments that mean nothing at all
thoughts of fair weather and skies of blue
and all I dreamed I saw in you

it was all there, every single part
every lyric ever sang right from the start
at midnight Cinderella had to run
and two fades quickly into one

Poetry by M.J.B. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License

Have's And Have Not's

If you have your health

If you have shelter

If you have those that love you

If you have those that you love

If you have warmth from the cold

If you have shoes for your feet

If you have sustenance when you are hungry

If you have drink when you are thirsty

If the have’s far out weigh the have not’s

Then you, my friend, are truly blessed!

Poetry by M.J.B. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

The Storm

This storm ravages me
The lightening flashes in my eyes
Torrential rains soaking me

Hurricane winds forcing me
in directions I don’t want to go
Doing everything except sweeping my soul clean

The thunder shakes my very core
Nothing to hold on to
I am weak and powerless

No shelter to be found
No safe haven
All security ripped from my grasp

The sun will not shine
The moon will not glow
No stars light my path


Poetry by M.J.B. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

spring

I long for spring...
fresh breezes and sweet air
cleansing the slush and frost
of winter
from my soul

Poetry by M.J.B. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License

my heart

my heart's been broken and badly bruised
always bouncing back, that's what I do
pulled the stops and went for broke
never penniless, there's always hope

under the stars and crescent moon
the many long nights I waited for you
but you had problems of your own
despite the sword you kept well honed

Que será, será, what was to be
I searched for you and you for me
when the time was right, it finally came
love long lost, beseeches the game

I knew fast, you lagged along
not sure I was singing your song
the longer you stayed, the doubt did slip
with my" can do" style, and razor wit

those doubtful days are packed away
when love did come it came to stay
happiness the future told
it desert heat or winter's cold
Poetry by M.J.B. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License

Control

It didn’t really go as planned
Things got in the way
Unexpected troubles
Changing the whole day

Handling the problems
Sorting through the mess
Shooting from the hip at times
To alleviate the stress

Where is it that I need to go?
What is it I should do?
When the solution finally comes
Will there be a me and you?

I no longer have control
If I ever really did
The control was always held by you
Although it wasn’t hidden

The dark side is upon us
Will we make it through?
Weathering yet another storm
Until the skies turn blue

Poetry by M.J.B. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

runner up

at no time should you be runner up
second best in a relationship
draw the line--stand your ground
there is nothing to be gained
and your heart will know

wait for the one
who puts you first
fills your needs
understands all
holds your hand

in the long run
this is what you deserve
what will make you smile
sooth your sole
and share your life

Poetry by M.J.B. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License

kiss me good night? (another of my mom's MJF)

if in this world there were but two
and all the world were good and true
and if you knew that no one knew
would you?

if you dreamed in pajamas blue
of two strong arms embracing you
and if you really wanted to
would you?

if all the world wee nice and bright
and if I stayed with you all night
and if I turned out all the lights
would you?

if we were in a certain place
an we were sleeping face to face
nothing between us but a little lace
would you?

Poetry by M.J.B. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License

her words (my mother's poetry MJF)

my mother has the prettiest tricks
of words and words and words
her talk comes out as smooth and sleek
as breasts of singing birds

she shapes her speech all silver fine
because she loves it so
and her own eyes begin to shine
to hear her stories grow

if she goes to make a call
or out to take a walk
we leave our work when she returns
and run to hear her talk

we had not dreamed these things were so
of sorrow and of mirth
her speech is as a thousand eyes
through which we see the earth

God wove a web of loveliness
of clouds and stars and birds
but made not anything at all
so beautiful as words

they shine around our simple earth
with golden shadowings
and every common thing they touch
is exquisite with wings

there's nothing poor and nothing small
but is made fair with them
they are the hands of living faith
that touch the garment's hem

they are as fair as bloom on air
they shine like any star
and i am rich who learned from her
how beautiful they are
Poetry by M.J.B. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License

Orion's belt

my heart felt the pain of love once gone
footsteps tread on cold, smooth stone
I hardly recognized my life
trails unmarked--no clear cut signs
the music and the laughter gone

the glory of this that I now see
days so golden, fields of green
I shield my eyes to these bright days
less I falter or they go away
taking with them my warmth

ponder deeply all this I feel
free of pain and the walls I built
vanished now into thin air
my heart pounds when you are near
and I'm striding across Orion’s belt


Poetry by M.J.B. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License

we

chances were slim that we could meet
friends knew friends, but not you me
in a crowded world, in spaces in time
I became yours and you became mine

of all of the hearts in this small, vast world
of all the photos that we sift through
did I see you and not you me?
time closes gaps, on what should be

of all of the loves you could have had
of those we used and tossed away
luck draws a line, the right cards played
and you and I are we on this day


Poetry by M.J.B. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License

FLOTUS

you didn't ask to be put on point
didn't want more than you already had
didn't see why it needed to be
but we did

quietly, you make your mark
no transgressions on your part
no transcendence, no parade
rebuffs around every corner

carry on, you beautiful girl
head held high to this bleak world
do your best and leave your stamp
the elegant ones always do


Poetry by M.J.B. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License

blue moon

I found all I was looking for
ain't nothing to do with you
or the songs you sang for me
when the moon was blue
yes, cutting all the losses
fed to the pigs like slop
a little commiseration
and vexation's all it brought

I couldn't make you understand
the things that I looked for
thought it'd be the last time
each time you hit the door
always reappearing
like a tarnished penny
nothing to do with longing
or wishes that were many

you knew where you were headed
I was along for a ride
thought there was time for moments
to last me my whole life
once again you proved it
the let down feeling returned
you struck a match in anger
when that short bridge you burned


Poetry by M.J.B. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License

Pieces Of My Heart

Pieces of my heart
Left in so many places
Like so many shreds of paper

Rend into little, tiny bits
Like confetti
Used in New York parades

Each tiny bit torn away
Leaves a scar
Which may never heal

Pieces of my heart
That I gave away
And that were not returned


Poetry by M.J.B. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

psychedelic

it's a Nirvana song, that makes no sense
you're living the lyrics, every inch
past blind corners, overgrown hedge
inside the room you made your bed

psychedelic, lights spin way too fast
the mirror shows the aftermath
lines on tables and on your face
it's time to bail from this rat race

I told you once, it'd be like this
you just smiled and blew a kiss
wandering down the rabbit hole
just like Alice, there you go

Poetry by M.J.B. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License

bridges

coming a long way
sometimes a one-way road
keeping to this path
as the future is foretold

bridges we construct
as we connect our minds
forged with love and trust
as this road continually winds

what's around the corner?
honesty and truth?
misguided apparitions
or is it merely you?

Poetry by M.J.B. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

senses

I look and see
before me
I touch and feel
the dream
I hear the song
sung for me
I smell the aroma
so sweet
I taste the ambrosia
of your love

Poetry by M.J.B. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.