lost

it was many a year ago
when time stood still
as we built dreams
added questions
subtracted faith
plunged ahead
into dark mornings
waiting for sun--
stars fade
the moon sleeps
and you and I
somehow
ceased to be

I waited for you
on my plateau
it took too long
never looking
to see where I landed
you deviate from
the path we choose
seeking easier
looking for longer
of which,
you would find,
neither
we both lost
,
Poetry by M.J.B. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License

I do believe

I watched it all go up in smoke
the fire kindled with words you spoke
written for the world to see
blowing through the leafless trees
nothing of it came to be

wrapped in velvet and put away
with the news from yesterday
thoughts that reappear as dreams
spilling from my memory's seam
in my sleep a soundless scream

the clock ticks away the midnight hour
sleep falls away in my morning shower
I send it back where it belongs
that part of you that is long gone
while dark clouds wait for the dawn

morning coffee tastes the same
grounds in the bottom that still remain
a taste that now is bittersweet
those mornings you shared with me
nothing grows from what's skin deep

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

more than I will give

past your sentries I slip in
scaling easily your walled mind
past guard dogs with paws on bones
under the eyes of a crescent moon
stealthily slipping down the hall
I falter and contemplate my next move

asleep, I find you all stretched out
a sheet protecting you from the cold
a kiss on your lips...they quiver beneath
searching for more than I will give
you do not awaken, but stir and moan
a dream you think, alas, you're wrong

assaulting your senses a sweet perfume
of yesterdays and laughing green eyes
a walk by the ocean, footsteps in sand
a tide of passion by the sea that ebbs
warm sun burning tender white skin
as your heart opens and I flow in

waking fully, you grasp for the dream
squinting in darkness you murmur my name
reaching out your hand and grabbing thin air
looking for something you felt was there
I step to the left in the shadowed room
no sounds do I make as I retrace my path
past the sentries and sleeping dogs
leaving the same way I came in

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

margin call

the piper makes a margin call
you pay with purest silver
a Judas kiss placed on the lips
of dreams that leave you quivering

shadows stretch across the lawns
the traffic lights are red
thoughts race through a busy mind
as you downshift into dread

nothing that was promised
has come forth to fruition
going past the mountains
with all of their superstitions

on you drive past sleeping valleys
nestled in open ranges
the sun sinks low--night settles in
but the crescent moon looks strange

damn the piper and the devil's dues
the deck was always stacked
you paid out with heart and soul
and it's too late to turn back

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

fool's gold

it heated your bed but not that part
where the burning questions lay
you picked it up and put it back
but never in the same place

like a moth unto a flame
you hovered to stay warm
never thinking what you gave
could do it any harm

infinite in your wisdom
playing the cards real close
a picture of a wanted man
hanging in a storefront window

pondering if the path is true
what happens if you stray
not a sign to guide you
as you travel life's highway

apparitions come in dreams
ghosts from yesterday's news
blowing like a tumbleweed
as you seek a different view

wandering and wondering
what the future holds
pondering if this thing you've found
could just be more fool's gold

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

half blind

over the border
and across the line
best guess forward
as I follow behind
I travel the path
smell the roses with thorns
looking not touching
seeing red flags that warn

between blown tumbleweeds
and the spinney soul
in the depths of deception
and what used to be whole
all that remains from
where the wheel rolled
are tracks in smooth sand
from what's taken its toll

the hour grows early
the sun has not risen
the trail grows weary
as it breaks from tradition
handing down emptiness
I shake hands with what's given
it all looks so innocent
in this standard of living

arching my back
as I stretch and yawn
there in my consciousness
it seeps from the claws
inside the chambers
and this ditch of my mind
I remove my sunglasses
and I stare out half blind

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

getting out

you're wakin' from the darkness
coming round to your senses
deciding to use risk management
see what all the fuss was about
the boat pushes back from shore
and you're runnin down the dock
as the gang plank is pulled back
a chance that is just missed

I see you from the deck
my hand shading my view
hair blowing in the breeze
one tear slipping from my eyes
the things we thought we wanted
like waves hitting on the shore
and I can barely see you
but I wave to you once more

while we both were searching
wading that river of doubt
it was so easy to fall into
so much harder to get out
I find the way without a compass
using the sun as a guide
and I can barely see you
as I blow a kiss goodbye

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

not making sense

I let go and it all slipped away
I start all over, again and again
like a million times before
there's no getting even or settling scores
I try to make sense of the rain

like the empty picture frame
where our picture used to be
like the dreams of the kisses
with my hand upon your face
I try to make sense of what's left

was it ever as it seemed?
were you ever even here?
an apparition of love
the beat of one heart
I try to make sense of the pain

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

you love me

you love me for the one-liners
that I quote from movies and songs
you love me for my eyes of green
and my hair that's streaked with blond
you love me for the length of my legs
that you say go on and on
you love me for my tiny waist
that your hands meet around
you love that when you touch me
a fire starts to burn
you love that when I leave you
I'm never gone for long
you love me more than your luggage
and baby, that's pretty strong

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

I think I see

every now and again
when the wind is blowing just right
I hear the music playing
like it did our very first night
maybe it's just the mesquite
or the call of the nightingale
but I know I can hear it
and I think I always will

when the clouds are forming
in the morning sky
I think I see you looking
with those crystal clear blue eyes
and if I squint mine tightly
I think I catch your wink
maybe it just the sun's glare
or you're closer than I think

I can smell the raindrops
and all the flowers that bloom
I can hear the music
that I first heard with you
I can hear you singing
in that perfect pitch
I still get the feeling
that there's much more to this

no longer are there messages
that you used to text
my phone no longer rings
and this I truly miss
while you're slaying your dragons
mine won't leave me alone
you don't miss what you don't have
'cause you're not coming home

many things left incomplete
the papers are stacking up
no longer sharing coffee
you took your favorite cup
the dust settled on the floor
with all you left behind
I could see our future
but I think you were blind

I can smell the raindrops
and all the flowers that bloom
I can hear the music
that I first heard with you
I can hear you singing
in that perfect pitch
I still get the feeling
that there's much more to this

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

a piece you won't forget

I didn't take you for a fool
but you've done some foolish things
as you run in and out of my life
leaving welts that sting

it's like shooting at a target
missing the dead center
when I think the door is shut
once again you'd re-enter

placating my immanent grace
as each bridge you did burn
never getting the nuances
oh, the things you'll never learn

no, I didn't take you for a fool
and I may have been a fool for love
it all dries up just like the wash
when the rain stops from above

maybe you'll be sorry
maybe there's no regrets
but way down deep inside you
lays a piece of me you won't forget

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

winter

the desert mountains
peppered with snow
winter comes
with its frosty glow
a beautiful photo
remains in my mind
of saguaro standing
spines sparkle
with ice


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

nature

a hawk soars high in cloudless sky
echoing, its shrilling screech
perching on a still dead limb
sitting, watching you and me

snow lays still upon the bank
protected by the acres of trees
ripples flow across the lake
from a chilling spring time breeze

casting in the stillness
your three you set free
my first rainbow not let go
but grilled that night for me


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

Monsoon

Thunder crashes in the night
Sideways lighting in the desert sky
Torrential rain to cool it  down
on the patio I watch it surround
A fresh breeze that blows my hair
Fragrant smell of rain in the air
Hours that pass, the rain doesn’t cease
Offering up a pleasant peace

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

Rain

The heavens open
The rain falls
Torrential, cleansing rain

I stand outside arms outstretched
Letting the rain soak me
Drenching, cooling rain

Wash away my sins
Renew my soul
Baptizing, spiritual rain

I ask too much
The rain dissipates and I am the same
Ordinary, common rain

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

torrential rain

pounding on skylight
nature’s beautiful music
lulling me to sleep

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

remembering this

when you look at the mountains
when you feel the cool breeze
when you hear the wind whisper
through the mesquite trees
when you smell the rain
from the desert monsoon
when you see the stars
and the crescent moon
will you think of me
remembering back
a bookmark in a chapter
a page torn from your past

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

monsoon

days hurry toward the future
minutes and hours ticking away
trying to hurdle the barriers
that keep obstructing my way
daylight is getting longer
I work more than I play
the desert is getting hotter
I need some cooling rain

I'm ready for the storm clouds
for the lightning flash
followed by the thunder
that rattles with its crash
I'm ready for the liquid silver
of each torrential drop
I love that nitrogen smell
I want the monsoon to start

tomorrow is not here yet
and it's already yesterday
life is just too short
there is always the piper to pay
I want to live in each moment
smell the fragrance of each day
and I am inviting you
to play out in my rain

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

all I feel inside

my vocabulary is extensive
but there are not enough words
to tell you how I'm feeling
that you haven't already heard

I could try to paint a picture
but there aren't enough hues
to wash the canvas with color
or paint the colors of you

the wonders of this love I feel
just can't be described
so I guess I'll have to show you
all the things I feel inside

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

nothing looks better

I put the magazine down
gave the guide a look
read another chapter
in a very long book
the days are long
and nights are worse
a dreamless sleep
my insomniac curse

drank a pot of coffee
all here by myself
wiped down all the counters
cleaned off a few shelves
then I went to work
put in a very long day
there's just is no fun
when you've gone away

finally got my hair cut
had lunch with some friends
it fills up the hours
but the time never ends
I then did some shopping
tried on stuff in blue
but nothing does look better
better on me than you

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

the current

how swift the current
useless to fight the great waves
in over my heart

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

every now and then

every now and then you
drift across my mind
thoughts of a different time
fantasy left behind

every now and then I
remember that first glance
when we took a chance
smiling as we danced

every now and then you
drift across my mind
do you think of me in kind
and memories that remind

history

when the snow falls high outside your door
and the wind blows cold from a North sky
let your mind drift to a distant shore
let my love keep you warm

in your place with cup in hand
the aroma strong, your favorite blend
let your mind wander back to a memory
of a time and place in our history

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

music from the 70's

music from the 70's
groups that have been revived
songs that played in another time
bringing back part of our young lives

my hair was so much longer
bell bottoms, low on my hips
listening to them on the radio
when all of that was "in"

I've got a lighter ready
to show appreciation
as we reminisce once more
to their life's dedication

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

wonderland

blanketed with fresh fallen snow
white, crystallized in a full moon's glow
doe eyes view--the only beholder
paw prints left from the intruder

underneath in frozen wonder
grass lays green, an icy tundra
waiting for the warm breath of spring
a thawing trend to set it free

wandering through this wonderland
silence plays without its band
laying down moving hands and feet
a snow angel the marking that I leave

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