Paradoxical sleep

Random thoughts at arbitrary times
A life once shared quickly demised
Thoughts that swim in water deep
Nightmares come in paradoxical sleep

You watch me flail, in over my head
Drift in and out while I mournfully tread
Choke out the water that’s in my throat
Silently drown or try to stay afloat

You were here and now you’re gone
Ash still falling with each new dawn
A life invested extinguished fast
Promise yields to the aftermath

Strength for all so they don't see
A tower that crumbles inwardly
Internal tears that my heart cries
The perfected façade is just a guise

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

love

like a flower I bloom 

the sun warm on my blossom 

heat radiates from my center 

moisture, rich on my petals 

I bask in your love 

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

simple math

I know > than I need
but < than I want
true - false = questions

if you + love
and / trust
the quotient
is ambiguous
at best

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

pipe-dream

feelings rush through this pipe-dream 

gushing like the leak in Louisiana 

leaking barrels and barrels of me 

killing what surrounds as it bleeds 

there is no fixing this enormous spill 

it spews too fast, with its own will 

Haliburton can't control the danger 

my heart the only thing in range

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

winter

golden leaves drop--dead
frost forms thickly all around
winter bares its soul

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

Tell It To Me Softly

Tell it to me softly 

Whisper the words 

Nuzzle my neck 

Hold me tight 

Take me there slowly 

With passion and fervor 

We have all night 

Let’s not hurry 

Stay with me after 

Caress and sooth 

Until it comes again 

Urgent and pressing 

Just like in the beginning

The Band Plays On

Tired of this same old tune 

Although the music has changed 

Tired of all the ins and outs 

And still the band plays on 

Tired of broken promises 

Wishes that won’t come true 

A one sided relationship 

And still the band plays on 

I think I finally get it 

You were never really there 

It was just my imagination 

And still the band plays on 

Don’t know why I stayed this long 

Knew you couldn’t change 

I know I’ve reached the breaking point 

And still the band plays on 

 I’ve given enough chances 

For you to make it right 

I guess it was too much to expect 

And still the band plays on 

 I’m not dancin' any more 

No matter what the song 

See my back as I walk away 

The band has finally stopped

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

Sins

you are bleeding from every pore 

your spirit is shattered 

the trauma to your soul, massive 

you tell me your sins 

as though I was your confessor, 

but the redemption you need can not come from me 

how many candles should I light? 

how many Hail Mary’s can I say 

to eradicate this pain? 

although the wounds will heal 

irreparable damage has been done 

and my heart aches for you 

can you find your way back? 

tell me what to do, what you need 

to ease this pain 

I stretch out my hand, grab hold 

I offer a shoulder, lean on me 

I open my heart and surround you with love 

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

Connect

I saw you 

Tall and fair

Standing by your car

You were as I pictured

How I thought you would be 

What I wanted you to be 

We connect 

Both mind and body 

On the same wave length 

We forge a bond 

A bond of friendship

A bond of trust and faith 

And when we part 

We each take with us 

A little of the other 

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

doors

doors close and open
what is around the corner
is a mystery

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

dotted line

I wait for a sign
standing in this valley
my mind outstretched to you

visions that I see...
tall saguaros
mountains surrounding
warm sun
blue sky
me and you

the path we walked
side by side
has weeds pushing up
through the dotted lines

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

call my name

when the sun sets low
in the desert sky
the wind finally stops
blowing in the mesquites
the moon starts to rise
in the dark of night
I will find you

when your dreams come
the ones that let you down
when you toss and turn
but can't shake them off
you reach and touch the
cold pillow near your own
in the dead of night
I will find you

call my name
and I will be there
reach for me
in your hour of prayer
whether you whisper or shout
say it or think it
there will not be anyone
in my heart but you
in the dark of night
I will find you

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

features and benefits

the features of this relationship are:
you are a strong friend
you love me more than your luggage
you are a genius (at times)
you have Freudian insight
you guide me through tough decisions
you are deep like Voltaire
you are optimistic
you do not criticize
you are a voice of reason
you support me
you let me vent
you are funny
you are sincere
you encourage my writing
you've stuck around (why, I don't know)
and more that I can list

the benefits speak for themselves

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

the mediator

this is my new role
feelings out, resolution
all on the table

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

satan’s lot

i’ve sold my soul
to Satan’s lot
what i got back
isn’t what i thought

i don’t make the rules
i’m not on top
misery and anguish
is all i’ve got

buried too deep
in pain and strife
enough of this heartache
for one short life

how do I get back
and break this pact
lookin forward
but all is black

should have read the contract
read between the lines
should of, could of, would of
there weren’t any signs

a life of misery
and too much pain
nothin ahead
nothin i’ve gained

pray to God
on bended knees
bring me back
save me please

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

poetry

we sing the songs about loving and living
taking more out than we are giving
about feelings spread out from east to west
lessons in life we haven't learned yet

we write the words that sometimes rhyme
jotting them down when we have time
writing about love and broken hearts
it's what we do and who we are

we don't care if others understand
each new stanza that we pen
sometimes short or often long
telling about all the goings on

more often than not, no rhymes or reason
spelling it out with adjective seasonings
verbs that flows from deep inside
about tangled roads and flowing tides


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

the place I left behind

looking for somewhere that I've never been

all alone and in between the place I come from 

the place that I'm in, the place I left behind 

there's a few things I don't know; 

some things hidden, 

I don't want to see things come and things go 

here today, gone tomorrow 

here for a minute, gone in an hour 

now it all just goes to show 

I needed you less than you needed me 

I offer sweet tea and sympathy for things of which we won't speak 

words that leave us weak 

utterances of nothing pledged 

lips that won't spit them out 

this place I come from this place that I'm in 

this place I leave behind

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

glorious wonder

did you hear it?
the love song borne on the early breeze
wafting down from mountains tall
through the brambled mesquite trees

do you hum it?
is it resonating in your head
a tune you carry deep inside
when you wake, till you go to bed

does it fill you?
wrapping you in glorious wonder
an inner light that now glows stronger
a gentle rain from echoing thunder

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

anthem

let freedom ring in every thought
for love of country and what it costs
waving strong, red, white and blue
in every heart, the colors wave true

bring me your tired, your hungry, your meek
every immigrant who asylum seeks
from coast to coast this anthem sings
in every heart let freedom ring

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

muzzle flash

the bullet stays in the chamber cause the safety was still on
never spinning through the barrel, the target left unharmed
couldn't smell the sulfur or see the muzzle flash
you should have aimed more carefully if you wanted it to last

you got to feel the excitement of the live round in the chamber
standing in the little booth surrounded by the danger
you got to hear the click and the noise from those up close
but your sight was never good at what was in front of you

the switch pulls in your target, without a single hit
nothing dead on center or even a near miss
you won't win a trophy or ever enjoy the prize
with your finger on the trigger, you missed it by a mile

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

without a trace

a million dreams without a face
that leave at dawn without a trace
planted deep they bloom and flower
only in the late, late hours

summer coursed through lover's veins
autumn came and love remained
leaving with the first snow fall
ice and cold that dashed it all

months of blatant disbelief
shoveling feelings without relief
my heart not able to take a snow day
it worked overtime packing it away

April comes and so do you
whistling again a heartfelt tune
some days filled with beauty and wonder
a song that threatens to take me under

you give a little and take a lot
resurrecting what I once forgot
summer tries to course through veins
clogged and blocked with love's remains

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

country song

I tried to pull it all
from out of thin air
tried to hold you close,
bring you much nearer
my arms came up empty,
like the hope inside of me
you never gave me a reason,
a reason to believe

I hung on with hunger,
you starved me to death
that cold, long winter
when I could see my breath
I couldn't see you through
those frost glazed panes
or in the desert spring
when the monsoons came

I tried to make sense
out of nothing at all
you never tipped your hand
and you dealt the cards
I finally packed my bags
so that I could move on
from what was never here,
from this sad country song

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

tumbleweed

blowing like a tumbleweed
across the desert sand
looking for some roots
a safe place for you to land
drifting with the mountain breeze
across valleys and lost highways
searching for the answers
in every desert sage

talking to saguaro
are the answers there?
looking to the stars and moon
to guide you with their prayers
searching always searching
for the things that will bring peace
even though you found it once
it didn't meet all of your needs

ramble onward bramble
seek and ye shall find
looking deeply in your quest
and at what you leave behind
good things are in your future
looking for what is blind
ramble onward bramble
seek and ye shall find

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

I remain

the morning sun upon the rise
red bleeds across the clouded sky
you know I'm here, I didn't run
even when the monsoon comes
it doesn't change a blessed thing
I remain, I remain

in the twilight and the dawn
in deep dreams where you belong
in the laughter and the tears
past the valley of pain and consuming fears
I remain, I remain

in the distance through the trees
what does plague also relieves
sand dripping through the hourglass
slowly catching up with the past
I see it all looking down the sights
through the scope on a clear night
that is how it's supposed to be
anguish ebbs from the wound that bleeds
and I remain
I remain

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

Kansas

the 70's music fantastic
what a wonderful night
you were singing to me
that "Kansas" song I like

always checking on me
"is there anything you need"
holding my hand tightly
and we never missed a beat

texting in the mornings
and late into the eve
I may not be in Kansas
but you could be what I need

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