empty handed

the rhyming comes easy
cadence makes its call
and I stand empty handed
with nothing at all
I shoot from the hip
but the aim is slightly off
and the target means nothing
nothing at all

I write the music
and you write the song
we sing it together
though we are alone
I hear the lyrics
and you feel the dance
when winter has ended
and we took a chance

we kiss and we part
and time passes quick
months have a way
of lighting a wick
the pleasures were ours
and we sing one last tune
but it is never quite over
for me and for you

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

Mona Lisa smile

would you want it if it was perfect?
if the prize held no surprise
if the fabric stretched without wrinkles
without flaws or pills or mars
when you hold it up for inspection
you discover the golden threads
while light dances on the beauty
of the yards in softest hues

would you want it if it was perfect?
a trail without twists and turns
a gravel road that stretches out
five hundred miles or more
not charted on any printed maps
not locatable by GPS
your high beams showing all that's true
on a path that is not so daunting

would you want it if it was perfect?
a photograph in black and white
airbrushed is the quality
hiding what doesn't meet the eye
framed upon the mantle
with a Mona Lisa smile
that brings up all the questions
of what is and won't be known

would you want it if it was perfect?
if the prisoner held less fight
it they surrendered their weapon
raising a white flag in the night
would it be any more rewarding
if resistance lays unmet
if in giving up on convictions
you won the battle but lost the war

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

offerings

it all bubbles forth
like uncorked champagne
the sun breaking through
after days of endless rain
and I'm feeling it all
from one simple text
I want it all--
all that comes next

I hold it close
and wrap it around
my heart's inner wall
and all that surrounds
I whisper a prayer
to the heavens above
that what you are offering
is the offering of love

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

Family and Friends

Although I am far away
From family and old friends
Our hearts are linked, the feelings strong
Renewed when we meet again

There’s not always time to keep in touch
No phone calls, emails or text
Too far away for visits
Too far away to connect

But when we are together
The bonds again intertwined
It’s like there’s been no distance
No space in hearts and minds

Family and friends, sustaining ties
The kind that keep us strong
Nourishing spirit, mind and heart
that last our whole life long

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

disillusioned

the moon shines on questions
deep in the dark
the sun rises unanswered
on where they are parked
maybe they are there
I just don't want to see
protecting my heart
from disillusioned beliefs

one of many days the same
there is no relief
the light doesn't beep on
a phone that just won't ring
I can't put it away,
through every pore it seeps
it won't let me rest
and it never sleeps

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

reflection

read it or not
feel or forget
taste or plot
unpetted pet

laugh or cry
swim or drown
black or blue sky
does surround

happy not sad
life goes on
a lily pad
on a calm pond

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

virus (Dr. Seuss-ish)

I cannot kiss nor can I hug
I might catch the dreaded bug
must mask up and wear some gloves
6ft back don't push or shove

wash your hands, don't touch your face
stay on the X and in your place
I have Purell just in case
killing germs without a trace

they say cases are many more
since we all could go outdoors
follow the rules don't spread the spores
so this virus stops its soar.

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

2020

painted lips that can not kiss
many hugs that I can't give
this horrible virus hanging thick
spreading far and very quick

fires rage the mountainside
up and down with ease it glides
people marching, killing, looting
while the laws they are diluting

copious people lose their way
while innocent ones are those that pay
lawless streets, best stay at home
as day and night the cites are roamed

too much strife to worry about
peace will come I have no doubt
this crazy year took a wrong turn
history repeats; they haven't learned

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

surround myself in you

I want to wake up to the sun
smiling in your eyes
feel your arms around me
and what rises from inside
I want to grasp the freshness
of all that is new and real
water it and let it grow
observe what is revealed

I want to wrap you all around me
surround myself in you
listen to you breathing
learn each nuance, all of your hues
let me be your mirror
reflecting love and light
from early in the morning
to late each and every night

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

thirty-nine

thirty-nine steps lead upward
without railing to cling to
each one a reminder
of all you took with you

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

no tresspassing

posted as no trespassing
no feelings are allowed
in visions of redemption
I stagger through the crowd
the moon glows eerie with envy
confusion wets the ground
breezes soft and holy
temptation's silent sound

with mesmerizing trances
eyes search just to know
what makes flesh and body yearn
for what burns in our soul
a moral sense of duty
a tear falling from the sky
seeing is not believing
as the consequences fly

posted as no trespassing
no feelings are allowed
in visions of redemption
I stagger through the crowd
the moon glows eerie with envy
confusion wets the ground
breezes soft and holy
temptation's silent sound

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

how?

how did you get in so deep?
slip past the walls that I had built
inside the fortress high and strong
stirring up the resting silt

how did you become embedded?
in each thought and every dream
things I hold in a heart shaped box
what slept as dormant memories

how did you become so infused?
pumping hard through capillary and vein
coursing each time my heart beats
running rampant through my blood steam

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

I meant it all

I meant it all right from the start
every line from every poem
every touch and warm embrace
each time my hands touched your sweet face
yeah, I meant it all

I see the prose written on the wall
I feel the song deep in my heart
I hear the guitars, feel the strings
of love that holds a deeper meaning
and what climbs blindly astride
yeah, I meant it all

I smell the smoke and feel the fire
what gets hotter as it all transpires
what is hidden swims to the top
I know that there's no way to stop
how can we just quit
yeah, I meant it all

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

'til we get it right

let's do that again
'til we get it right
if it takes all day
it it takes all night
we could discuss
but talk is cheap
get a little closer, baby
I'll show ya what I mean

let your hands talk
like you're reading braille
your lips moving
on an ivory trail
discover the secrets
down deep inside
as we both float
on passion's tide

let's do that again
'til we get it right
if it takes all day
if it takes all night

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

in the dust

I jumped the hurdles, one and all
some were big and some were small
in the dust, I watched them fall
with all their pretty little flaws

up I went, I climbed the tower
you sent pictures of many flowers
I stood close, it seemed like hours
hanging on when all seemed dour

I still check now and again
window open so I sneak in
it is not a mortal sin
this is how it all begins

disingenuous was their game
we only had our self to blame  
with a match, you set my flame
one more victory to my name

I didn't think I'd come this far
you sing sweet with no guitar
hand in hand we leave the bar
hugging close, we reached my car

three years come and three years gone
it really never seemed this long
we play, on and on and on
I changed the tempo, not the song

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

draw the line

say the words
lance this wound
cut me and watch me bleed
make it indelible
so there's no going back
draw the line

I thought I could
but I know I was wrong
I've tried too many times
it's gone too far, I'm in too deep
my mind's lies are my heart's truths
draw the line

there aren't any songs of forever
no miracles of love lost and found
just rainy days and blues hanging lowand deliverance from pain that won't come
draw the line

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

maybe

could it be that the hardest
and the right things are the same
could it be you want it all
without any of the pain
maybe you compare
maybe you judge
maybe you want it
maybe you don't

could it be you stepped over--
way across the line
could it be there are no questions
that ever cross your mind
maybe you are right
maybe you're dead wrong
maybe there's no doubt
maybe answers will not come

could it be you seek perfection
a taste of all that's true
could it be you seek an image
a mirror reflection of you
maybe you seek
maybe you will find
maybe you can
maybe you won't

could it be that what you've gained
is exactly what you had
could it be that the circumstance
leaves you feeling sad
maybe you should look
maybe you will see
maybe you are blind
maybe it was in front of you

could it be that in the future
this will all make sense
could it be that you'll look back
on memories that you missed
maybe you'll be happy
maybe some things never change
maybe you can settle
maybe not

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

wander and wonder

you discover what lay buried
deep inside my soul
coffee does not warm the part
now open and exposed

left along the wayside
left without a marker
sparkling in the sunlight
shivering in the dark

one thousand days of rain and sun
while you ponder and measure
wondering if this gem will fit
inside with all you treasure

as you wander and wonder
someone discovers your find
he turns it over and over
thinking all the others were blind

a trinket in the eyes of one
a jewel in the eyes of another
a loss in the life of one
a rare find in the life of the other

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

Brushing past

I can’t touch that part of you
That wall can not be breached
You won’t let down your defenses
That separate you from me

Stuck in a chain of moments
That were not meant to last
Telling it to my memories
When I relive the past

Face down in recollection
From the time that you were here
Moving in your own direction
Brushing past when I was near

I don’t know what you’re seeking
Maybe you don’t know your self
But it wasn’t me you were looking for
Or love in and of itself

Keep your heart protected
Don’t let down the wall
But the loneliness that surrounds you
Won’t protect you from the fall

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

caught

in the timber way up north
a cabin by a cool, deep lake
alert and watchful here I lay
always tossing wide awake

fish swim deep in cooling fathoms
waiting to get  teased then caught
like an unrequited lover
feeling all that love has wrought

walking in the early morning
crunching feet on fallen cones
reminiscing, always remembering
the years of what is sharply honed

coming to that still sweet spot
where passion was once sweetly born
was it only yesterday
where now the weeds have overgrown
 
Poetry by M.J.B. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License

senses

I still remember the way you taste
ambrosia when I lick my lips
honey sweet--inviting me
to sample and enjoy

I still remember the way you feel
your warm breath against my skin
hands that slide as we hit our stride
fulfilling each and every part

I still remember the sweet perfume
hanging heavily--permeating the room
as the sun slips from the dusky sky
and lunar light filters in

I still remember the lyrics that play
over and over in my mind
music we write to this dance we do
strumming softly in the night

I still remember the vision reflected
in every thought, in every mirror
all of these senses can not lie
or hide all of this that stays inside

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

shell game

I know you were here for a reason
but it beats the heck out of me
as you give me another lame excuse
thinking I can't solve this mystery
your sleight of hand may be real quick
a shell game in which you believe
but you've forgotten my magical power
of seeing into hidden things

here we sit in the same room
but we're not in the same place
we do the dance and sing the songs
as we both stare off into space
you turn left and I turn right
the moon goes behind a cloud
it's not a win, it's not a loss
as love shuffles away in the crowd

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

center stage

I rehearsed the lines for the center of your stage
I knew every word by heartI knew the lyrics to every score
that the orchestra would have started
I knew the backdrops for every scene
the costumes to be worn
I knew my cues, and all yours too
as I waited at your stage-door
I knew I was the understudy
when I tried out for the role
I waited in the wings, with arias to singto a heart that was already stolen
but still I waited, anticipated
the time for me would come
the curtain won't rise, to my surprise
after the last not is strummed

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

wild things

my dreams made up of wonder
my back laying in tall grass
trying to see the Milky Way
and what the stars have cast
a spell that I am under
my eyes are open wide
becoming one with sky and moon
in clouds I testify

nothing else comes close
to this bliss--this ecstasy
oozing out of every pour
purged deep from inside of me
it soaks the ground around me
flooding into the desert wash
wild things come to quench their thirst
drinking their fill from what runs off

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

petals

in between the petals
where the sweetness lays
moisture forms like condensation
on glass from humidity
joy lingers by the candle's glow,
long into the night
with lunar beam comes a sweet dream
--half reality, half fantasy
I wake at dawn, stretch and yawn,
languid in your arms
knowing when you slip
inside this vaporous mist
I'll catch you when you fall
I'll catch you when you fall

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