grounded

the mountain stands, a testament
and it has seen it all
they've seen me climbing
way up high
and they have seen me fall
once again I try it
getting further than before
and way up in the cloudy sky
the coopers hawk does soar

she lands upon a craigy perch
viewing all below
she is searching for something
just what I do not know
the saguaro looks the other way
as once again I flail
I have wandered way far off
of this that was a trail

finally I am on top
and look about in wonder
of all the things that did prevail
and try to put me under
carefully, retrace my steps
as I start the trek down
my steps a little surer
as I know I am well grounded

I can't believe I did it
finally, I am free
it really took some doing
putting you away from me
did I pass or did I fail
we'll just have to see
right now I know
I did the best;
and that friend is the key

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

the center of the universe

I was never the center
of your small universe
the tiny role I played
completely unrehearsed
when the curtain fell
roses were not received
I take my final bow
and slip away unseen

maybe you will feel me
in the sweet breeze that blows
maybe I am with you
everywhere you go
maybe a line from a song
will bring the memory back
never looking deep enough
only seeing what I lacked

a present tied with ribbon
a gift of all I want
slowly it diminishes
ghosts and all of the haunts
I'm the center of a universe
where I always wanted to be
it is not your universe
that's now alright by me

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

tingle

the tingle you felt on your lips
one last small reminder
a connection that is always there
the rest that you shed blindly

always that same chemistry
the match held to my flame
igniting things in both of us
neither to place blame

I can't promise to keep it
like a desert fire it'll blaze
always a spark rekindled, not
extinguished by monsoon rain

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

monsoon

the monsoon brings rain
the desert thrives and flowers
again, so do I

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

reaching out

friends reach out their hand
grab a hold to pull you up
helping you dust off

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

Road Trip

It’s a BFF road trip
Just like Thelma and Louise
Happy ending though

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

Amigo

People come into our lives
For many different reasons
Sometimes it is something they lost
Or something I am needing
Just like in a romance
It has it’s ups and downs
It takes a little nurturing
Some happiness and frowns
Sharing morning coffee
And talking about our day
Sometimes lighthearted banter
Or problems that we face
I don’t know how it happened
That I found a friend like you
I guess I was missing something
And that’s when you came through
Thanks for being there amigo
And taking up that slack
For listening and for caring
For always watching my back

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

over the wall

over the wall and past the sentries
at their posts fast asleep
undetected in you slip
resurrecting an alien dream

defenseless is this state I'm in
things kept in check by day
seeping from an unguarded heart
you erode them slowly away

moonlight through the window
a kiss on moistened lips
hands that elicit passion
all that I have missed

stirring softly, moans escape
continuing without demands
eyes can't see behind the lids
closed tightly to hold this in

the sun arrives and I open my eyes
wonder takes its place
not a dream, you are next to me
a smile graces your sleeping face

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

fantasy

somehow caught between the lines
of fantasy and of fact
a mind that wanders aimlessly
or has seriously gone off track

these shards of recognition
from these dreams that I replay
the angles blurred and twisted
still I long for the new day

my fantasy says you wait for me
with your strong arms opened wide
a love that I can cling to
a safe place for me to hide

but dreams have a way of ending
when the sun rises in the east
and fantasy fades to memory
as the day encroaches on me

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

no avail

like a hamster on a wheel
I spin and turn to get nowhere
the end is the beginning
the beginning is the end
around and around and around I spin

I move forward...you step back
too many times I've done this dance
glad I'm not afraid of heights
from ups and downs and sleight of hand
movements I don't understand

all the balls kept in the air
expertly, you keep them there
my proverbial hamster wheel
spins and turns to no avail

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

undone

you had made up your mind
to leave it all behind
but you left some things undone
when the time came for you to run

there was nothing left in that place
that could make you want to stay
the ties that kept you there
never answered by your prayers

so you traveled to the West
to scenery that you loved best
trying to start again
rebuild and make new friends

you could never shake your past
a monkey on your back
the things you left undone
in your dreams a constant rerun

so you go back one last time
face the jurors for your crimes
the sentence you can't bear
you should have left it there

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

let's love

like a bull out of the shoot
it bucks you around
shakes you up
spins your world round
you may never get your feet
back on the ground
but yeehaw baby, let's love

as you are holding on
for all you are worth
and there's your heart
trampled in the dirt
grab on to me, hold on tight
get back on, again to ride
yeehaw baby, let's love

keep on trying
to make the odds even
keep on fighting
keep on believing
get back on
keep on tweakin it
yeehaw baby, let's love

switching to diet

around and around and around it spins
hitting the bottom not bottoming out
just when I think it's done for good
up to the top it all bubbles again

the effervescence with all of the fizz
I thought was flat, without the cap
I guess it doesn't work out that way
it tickles my nose when it's going in

the taste, so sweet as I drink it down
I feel the burn like Coke in my throat
I'm switching to Zero, that's all there is
it still tastes good without any pounds

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

yuk

wheezing, sneezing allergies
about to get the best of me
puffy eyes and they tear
I think I need some benadryl
cause the freeze didn't cure my ills

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

beginnings

I swore not ever,
never again
would I allow
just more than friends
things were thin
then you walked in
making it start
and my mind spin
a hollow sound
in a heart of tin
ruptures my love
and so we begin

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

one more time

questions burn
pages turn
still some secrets
I must learn

behind, our past
don't look back
nothing there
but smoke and ash

still, the dreams
my mind screams
waylaid answers
I get it seems

in between
crisp, fresh sheets
love starts over
for you and me

one more time
it's all fine
still I wonder
if your heart's mine

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

Cupid

this time Cupid's aim
his arrow straight and piercing
dead-on through my heart

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

all

I can give you all
serve you heaven on a plate
that is just a start

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

by candlelight

romance, candles, wine
all of these you do not need
yet, my heart still flips

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

love is like this

like monsoon falling on the desert sand
it blows in quick--never like you planned
the rug pulled out from where you stand
you're just not sure how you will land

love is like this--always a surprise
never quite like you had surmised
right before your very eyes
it's like a hidden Cracker Jack prize

you can search both high and low
looking in the hearts of friend and foe
maybe it's someone you didn't know
that lights, the fire that makes you glow

light my fire...stoked high and hot
bring back the love that I forgot
each petal--loves me, loves me not
this is the true one that I sought

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

should I

should I have spelled it all out
wrote it plainly on a wall
should I have been more honest
with what I hold within
should I have given you more
of all the things I truly feel
should I have said
I love you
and would it have,
could it have,
made a difference

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

no boundaries

generous the gift
no boundaries that define
lavish is your love

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

letting it be

the sun rose in the mountains
pushing past red clouds of dawn
I watch with coffee--my day begins
as the nightingale hushed its song

darkness fades and light reflects
on the pool of deepest blue
the softest smile upon my face
remembering the swim with you

quiet and peaceful I reflect
on all you bring to me
my heart swells where our love dwells
thanking God for letting it be

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

the wonder of it all

I can give you love through WiFi
hit the send and let it fly
see it post upon your wall
oh, the wonder of it all

I watch the jibjab that you made
in my email I hit save
laughing at the cartoon me
nothing funnier I believe

by the sea I draw in sand
thinking not, nor with a plan
when I finish what I started
initials wrapped inside a heart

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

the love of the West

a hat a cowboy doesn't make
even a horse or ridin' the range
it's the love of the West
the mountain sunsets
the valley stretching out for miles
the sound of the coyote howl

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