Empty Space

I reach out to touch you
and clutch empty space
another day like the last
with the same old heartache

months since you left me
each day passes slow
as I wander through hours
with no inner glow

you had brought back something
I forgot I had missed
from that very first moment
that very first kiss

back now where I started
before you were here
no longer to hold me
and cradle me near

like a cancer unfeeling
the wounds are so deep
unable to concentrate
unable to sleep

and the weeks go so slowly
my world at a halt
this coma won't recede
till the questions resolve

so I face new dilemmas
one day at a time
although it was easier
when I thought you were mine

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

Remember Me

You’ll remember me
And all I inspired
When you think of me
And how I lifted you higher

You’ll remember me
The footsteps were small
You’ll miss what we had
And I how I gave you all

You’ll remember me
And the calls that were late
You’ll wish you’d paid attention
To the hints that I gave

You’ll remember me
My passion and kiss
A future that was yours
And what you now miss

You’ll remember me
And a love that was true
When you think back on it all
What I gave to you

You’ll remember me
Who now has your back?
Who’s in your corner?
Who’s taken up the slack?

You’ll remember me
Cause I movin too
It's not to be closer
It's away from you

You'll remember me
And what might have been
If given the chance
If you'd just let me in

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

The Sea Knows

I look behind me now
At my footsteps in the sand
Alone on this deserted beach
My thoughts are my companion

The tide is ebbed, it's way far out
The sun is getting low
A calmness coming over me
With each gentle wave that rolls

This time of deep reflection
Under the sun's soft light
Resolving inner conflicts
That haunt my days and nights

And the evening comes in gently
As I retrace my path
The twinkling stars and lunar glow
Showing the way back

And the sea gives up no secrets
Though many it does know
On all my walks on this smooth beach
It's the sea that I have told

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

Short List

I thought that you were different
I might've been wrong about you
I took you as someone who cares about me
You mistake me for a fool

I may not be on your short list
In the top one or two or three
But I have a lot of patience
And I’m there when you need me to be

I am always watching your back
And help you when I can
But what you have given back to me
I really don’t understand

I know your life is busy
Mine is the same way
But give me a little break here
And let me know we are okay

It’s not that I am needy
Or expect you at beck and call
But ignoring and being indifferent
Is not what I deserve at all

You need to look a lot deeper
At what I have given here
And be a little more attentive
And be a lot less austere

It won’t take that much time from you
Just treat me with a little more care
I will always be in your corner
Can't you feel me there?

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

my life is an

independent film
where even the leading role
is not played by me

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

comparisons

can you really compare?
day to night
apples to oranges
is it that easy?
day is for work
night is for stars and dreaming
a lack of complexity
too many depths;
look deeper
I am night and longing
an apparition, visualization
floating through your dreams
touching on your senses
all of them
leaving a taste
of all that was
of all that can be

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

re:

reconnect, rebuild, reinvent, renew, response
repose, redo, relax, renown, rekindle, require
regenerate, reborn, resurrect, rewind, rebound
renew, redirect, reflect, respond, repartee, reorder
re-enforce, referee, reference, refine, reflect, refrain
regal, regret, reinforce, reiterate, rejuvenate, relate
relative, relent, repent, reputable, rescue, real

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

Bound

Wanting just to break away
From this love we shared
Feelings not the same now
There’s anguish and despair

You are holding on now
To the way it used to be
The lost love and lost passion
That you refuse to see

Ties that held to tightly
Ties that kept me bound
Ties that once were everything
Now have come unwound

Someday after I have gone
You will see what’s true
And your heart will slowly mend
From what we both went through

phases

each crescent moon that has gone by
found you with your one true love
each time I look at the mocking orb
I could see you there together

silence grows like the moons in between
as it fades into each of its phases
each time I think I have put it to rest
the crescent moon glows once again

with still many more to come yet

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

Body Language

Down in this green meadow
By the flowing stream
Laying in the shadows
Of a giant willow tree

We talk in body language
Touching with light strokes
Laughing, sighing, pleasing
Playing the right notes

Down in this green meadow
Your love to me you swear
I accept with pleasure
and all I have to share

Broken Bridges

It's all now broken bridges
Our love did come to this
Destruction not repairable
Can’t shake loose this abyss

Untruths and broken promises
Have led us down this road
Couldn’t see where we were heading
Could not have been foretold

All the signs and nuances
We should've seen along the way
We stumbled over them headlong
They caused our love to fray

We are both the guilty ones
A party to this crime
For letting it all slip away
Over this long period of time

These damages that have amassed
Have slain the love we shared
There’s no going back now
There’s nothing to repair

I know you feel as I do
I can see it with one look
This feeling is a two way street
Close the chapter of this book

Parting won’t be easy
After this long time
But leaving you is easier
Cause you’re no longer mine

a bruised heart

will the bruises in
my heart heal
the deep contusions
black and blue
from you
when everywhere I look
songs that I hear
remind me daily
the discoloration
left on my mind
as well as my heart

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

footsteps

I couldn't tell
how this would end
telling my mind
it was all in the plan
yours not mine

I didn't know
I had a lesson to learn
following your lead
listening with my heart
which is now broken

I should have used my mind
trumped your moves
been less oblique
less follower, more leader
should have mastered this game

time will tell
if you won in the end
my heart will heal
but my footsteps will echo
small but deep in your soul

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

Innocent

I used to be the way you are
Innocent and pure
Till life stepped in and changed it
Now, no longer sweet and demure

Needed to grow a thicker shell
Protect my inner self
Though thicker than intended
Purity has been shelved

The things I’ve learned, the pain accrued
Has made me so much tougher
I had to learn to fight back
In order not to suffer

I hope you remain untainted
Keep your sweetness and your charm
Go through this life untouched by this
Go through this life unharmed

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

Blood Line

A fire that burns through wind and rain
A candle lit with eternal flame
Leaving me burning with a different pain
A feeling I can’t give a name

You came to me like a new dawn
Awakening things I thought were gone
Words rewritten to an old song
Holding close, loving strong

Shining on this heart of mine
Hearts that quickly did entwine
Shine on me till the end of time
A new path, a new blood line

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

Shirt Haiku

I'm wearing your shirt,
it is very big on me
I think you don't mind

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

love comes back around

softly now it arches its back
stretches long and yawns
after its little catnap
love comes back around

eyes that see into the dark
claws again retracted
seeing what lays inside my heart
stirring what sleeps therein

purring a sweet melody
a warm resonating sound
circling back, one more chance
love comes back around

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

Struggle

the struggles of life
are what define
happiness and strife
that boggle the mind

a door will shut
another will open
not always black and white
no matter what you're hopin'

the reasons not clear
the borders are blurred
can't go through life
undeterred

take what you get
do the best that you can
accept what is offered
i reach out my hand

learn from the bad
dig yourself out
pull yourself back
growing more devout

this too shall pass
maybe not that quick
i stand by you
through thin and through thick

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

a coin

tossed into a well
what I wish is almost free
but it costs so much

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

My Heart

It’s the things you didn’t plan on
That take you by surprise
A treasure you discover
The things you can’t surmise

It’s the things you didn’t count on
That somehow turn out right
A plethora of emotion
On a very starry night

It’s the things you whisper to me
When we’re dancin’ really close
Swaying to the music
As the cd softly drones

It’s the things you do to please me
Thoughtful, caring, kind
Captures my very essence
Keeps you on my mind

It’s the things that we are planning
The future to unfold
A life of love together
My heart that you now hold

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

rust

in spite of my heart that lays in the open
in spite of the love irrevocably broken
I hitched to a star that shoots from the sky
and all I imagined I saw in your eyes

you saw the future and that I was in trouble
as you sang about the light at the end of your tunnel
the lyrics were vague and I know not for me
but I hung on each word and continued to read

it all fell apart and started to fray
a polaroid that is blurred and time will fade
I pen the same thoughts but in different words
in case you are listening and still haven't heard

I interview each prospect and things it could mean
each one leaves me wanting and lacks what I need
I'm stumbling forward as I give it two shots
and even on my best day, I yearn for what's lost

you tell me to hope, not give up on a belief
you ply me with truth, like the friend that I need
I drink from your cup, and pretend all of these things
as dreams corrode with rust and fantasy intervenes

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

Intensity

The feelings rush over me
like water, pouring over stones in a brook
leaving no part of me untouched

The intensity of the passion,
the warmth of your love,
the power of your touch

I have no will,
no strength to fight this
I surrender to you

When the fervor has ebbed
we lie together side by side
a tangle of arms and legs

This nirvana you bring
resurrects all that I am
and builds a fire in my soul

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

The Price of Love

What is the price on ended love?
I think it’s very high
Dreams and heart are broken
Pride and ego go awry

The time we lost in this romance
Something we can’t get back
Lessons learned are priceless
What was it that we lacked?

And if this was taxable
How much did we invest?
Could we have done it better
When we were put to test

Next time I’ll work harder
To try to make it last
Study all the nuances
Learning from my past

a pretty good start

as I reach an understanding, of what will never be
I wish you all the best, as you wish the same for me
I've pieced it all together in my mind and soon my heart
and if I have to start somewhere, I'd say it's a good start

it was something I was running to, but didn't get that far
something you were running from, it caught you were you were
we were in the same place, but not at the same time
you were granted your wish, while I'm still waitin' on mine

I don't know now what happens, if it all has been too much
if you're tired of understanding, I'm tired of being a crutch
when I finally come to grips with the truth you made me see
that's when you turn your back, take what's left and leave

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

(JJW 6-11-04)

may you always be strong
the world at your feet

may the angels watch over
day and night as you sleep

may you always be mindful
and help those you meet

may you thrive your whole life
and never know defeat

may your life be a treasure
of everything that’s sweet

may you always know love
to make your life complete

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