I'll walk, thanks

nowhere fast,

that is where we were heading
you insist on driving
me with eyes closed
riding shotgun
thinking we would get there
anywhere, eventually
but I was wrong

an abrupt stop
dislodging me from my focus
shaking it up
doors opened
we got out
one of us
decided to walk

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

my heart

I can't tell anymore,
where I stop and you begin
every beat of my heart is you
pumping through my veins
your love, the adrenaline
that keeps me going
every waking moment
all of my thoughts of you

what are your thoughts?
are they only for me?
you used to say...
I was perfect for you
is this still true?
am I your one and only
or your here and now?

I meant every promise I made
every truth I wrote for you
every line in every work
nothing more...nothing less
am I unworthy of a promise?
a written testament just for me
speak now with flowing pen

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

hard and fast

I've played the market
played the field
been a widow
know how it feels
hard and fast
now, I kneel
you walked in and
shit  got real 

there you stood
in a yellow shirt
looking my way
oh, what a flirt
spilled my drink
all over my skirt
you were gonna love me
or make me hurt

buy you a drink?
the tall one said
I didn't need one
to go to my head
you'd look great
layin' across my bed
another notch?
or a golden thread

pretending was never
a game I played
always up front
with the words I laid
didn't take long,
I knew right away
my future was written
all over your face

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

yes

 I closed my eyes, you opened your hand
the promise of our life together
sparkling, in the box

solitaire excitement  
all things new and wonderful

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

dark and night

I got lost in the midst of your riddle 

miles away caught in the middle 

while you struggled and tried to fight

against a heart laid on the line 

I took one chance and spilled my guts

thought I'd seep in through the cuts 

it echoed against a solid wall 

bouncing like a rubber ball 

don't feel bad, it's not your fault 

I couldn't penetrate your vault

the difference as plain as dark and night 

you always saw what I couldn't hide 

it all frays, that once thick tether 

duct tape couldn't hold us together 

time moves on and I think its settled 

then back it comes like a wilted petal 

it could be a dream or monsoon rain 

the phases of the moon or a song's refrain 

it churns and surfaces once again 

that old heartache--my long lost friend

don't feel bad, it's not your fault 

I couldn't penetrate your vault

the difference as plain as dark and night 

you always saw what I couldn't hide 

 

it all frays, that once thick tether 

duct tape couldn't hold us together

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

always, never

I know the very things I see
still, you keep surprising me
in and outside of the lines
edges never exactly defined
a blurry black and white not framed
it's always never quite the same

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

poetry

it's not poetry
I write what I am feeling
and sometimes it rhymes

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

happy

mountains majesty
only blue sky surrounds me
God’s grace shining down

down and out

I found you when you were down and out
your soul with holes and inside doubt
the prayers you said with your rosary
couldn't stop that deep, deep bleed

looking through like I wasn’t there
took what I offered, refusing to share
I stayed beside you—held your hand
helped you try to understand

the closer you got, the further away
holding me close yet still at bay
I warmed your lust, but not your heart
you told me from our very start

the tables turn, I place no blame
on love’s defeating, haughty game
words don’t come in any form
at night when I lay safe and warm

I always knew you wouldn’t miss
any form of a vacant kiss
always reading yesterday’s news
it is just the publisher’s views

I

I dream not…
of that long past
of stormy sky
and aftermath
of moonless nights
and starry schemes
of what was never
as it seemed

I think not…
of thoughts left blue
of black and white
in hazy hues
of borders crossed
and passports stamped
with a nod of the head
and lips tight clamped

I see not…
what could have been
if you had only
let me in
seeing with your eyes
not with your heart
acting the role
but never the part

I tasted wine...
so bittersweet
what I sowed
was what I reaped
after time
it mattered not
memories fade
and are forgot

stolen bliss

kisses from a fantasy 

moments of stolen bliss 

cold nights return to haunt you 

when you dream back on this

memory betraying feeling 

in the hole were buried deep 

when you explore the options 

and out the sieve it seeps 

trying to piece it together 

trying to find a missing link 

but it all won't reassemble 

no matter what you think 

 the very things that attract you 

oppression that holds you back 

salvation eludes your conscience 

your soul falters from attack 

the bridge that led to tomorrow 

the smoke still in the air

thinking of returning 

stranded with what's not there

too long your thoughts did falter

bout what was real or lies

and now your left here wishing

you'd dropped what you disguised

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

good morning

how long have you been watching?

oblivious as I sleep snoring softly, 

maybe not 

your arm tight around me as I stir

I stretch and yawn in the early darkness 

deep blue eyes looking into sea green 

me: "good morning, baby!" 

my hair, tangled and black mascara smudges 

under my lashes 

breath not as sweet from hours of sleep 

I stretch full length, rolling into your arms 

green eyes looking into deep blue 

you: "good morning, beautiful"

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

something

you've touched something;

something that hasn't been touched for some time 

deep inside it rested--

sleeping, waiting

it stirs and stretches 

coming to life 

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

put it to rest

it fades to a shimmer 

there in the west

another day gone

put it to rest

was it all that you dreamed

or somehow lacking

try it tomorrow

without all the hassles

brushing my teeth

fore I climb into bed

prop up the pillows

for my aching head

pick up my book

the nightlight is on

the doors are locked

this day is done

relaxing, retrieving

the place I left off

a kiss from my hubby

before I dose off

a couple of chapters

is all I can read

my eyes are now heavy

and I drift off to sleep

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

what do I do

what do I do with what I know?
thoughts overgrown with thick, green mold
ghosts of those who once stayed close
black and whites now overexposed
they hang still, on hallowed walls

what do I do with what once was?
portraits blurred; out of focus fuzz
you say forget them, just because
too many that caused such a buzz
they know more than they will tell

what do I do with what's within?
to the sea I confess most sins
all these waves could do me in
will I drown or will I swim
they wash still on sandy shores

what do I do with constant thought?
all the pain and tears it brought
is it for real of just for naught
my heart ensnared and tightly caught
they matter not, they matter not

one more lonely dream

the things that I can’t fathom
the thoughts that rest here deep
I’m laying low and waiting
as those bullets whiz past me
it’s those little things that wounded
those moments I can’t see
can we reach the pinnacle
or all that we can be?

imagination covers
too heavy in this heat
you try to pull the blanket off
I roast in the hot seat
the gash that will not stop
my mind continues to seep
nothing stops the heartache
of a heart that will still bleed

we lay down here together
as usual I don’t sleep
your hand rests on my body
no comfort there for me
it flows out with the current
a bottle floating at sea
coming back to haunt  this room
just one more lonely dream

leave it where it lays

I will try to leave it there
that place history belongs
a blank page of days gone by
throw some sod over it
nothing will grow
barren trees stand with many limbs
ghosts of old memories

move on from there
leave it where it lays
quips like barbs
tear my mind
it is not healthy
nothing good can grown
from those by-gone times

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

red-sky seas

I hear your voice, just a whisper 

I hear you sing it one last time 

I could have sworn I heard you say 

"I loved you" then you turned away 

faded roses in your hand 

from the bed where they were strewn

petals wilted; turning brown 

fall through fingers to the ground 

I didn't see the things you saw 

didn't know that it was there

a heart escapes what's in the air 

the end to a tragic love affair

two lovers in the heat of night 

wait upon the sun to rise 

ships that sail under red-sky seas

 a love without a guaranty

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

DNR

a do not resuscitate 

no heroic measures taken 

a surgical cut deep into flesh 

crimson, flows the love

pooling on the pristine tile 

blood red on angelic white 

footsteps track across the floor 

spreading it from my heart's door 

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

your shirt

you hand me your shirt, the palest of yellow
said this is the one that I wore when we met
you button each one leavin the two at the top
sayin darlin, you sure do make it look hot

I never remember the color of your shirt
all I remember is the total outlook
the careless appeal with that twinkle in your eyes
I knew I was a goner that very first night

my stilettos click on the cool, dark tile
we snuggle up close for a movie and wine
long before the credits have a chance to role
we're lost in the moment of being so close

one by one, each button gets undone
we're back where we started...when I first put it on
nothing but white noise from the plasma tv
the shirt looks good on the floor where it lays

I never remember the color of your shirt
all I remember is the total outlook
the careless appeal with that twinkle in your eyes
I knew I was goner that very first night

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

pure gold

what I shelter deep in here 

one kiss from you makes it all clear 

like a flower that blossoms 

like the sea rushing the shore 

I feel love knocking 

on my heart's door 

yesterday is past tomorrow yet to come 

you hold what I treasure there in your palm 

gingerly you examine with tenderness you hold 

lovingly you offer 

your heart of pure gold

I thought I knew love and all of its games

but I can tell now this isn't the same 

when two hearts beat and echo as one 

the arcs connect and won't be undone 

like a flower that blossoms

 like the sea rushing the shore

I hear you knocking and 

open my heart's door 

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

fade away

you fade away: don't call or text 

a friendship of convenience 

what works for you doesn't for me 

just another wait and we'll see 

I got off at the last stop 

didn't come unglued or blow my top

just slipped away into your past 

you'll see the signs if you look back 

don't worry 'bout me, I'll be fine 

just like every other time 

you can't mend this time what's broke 

I thought you cared--but know you don't

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

free day

I sped past some and never stopped
didn’t slow down or take a look
others had me riding the clutch
they gave less than all they took

the highway curved and I hit bumps
couldn’t see around the turns
dense, green trees and mountains tall
on and on as my life churned

tried to put it in perspective
same old thoughts and vivid dreams
a faceless man without a care
who lived to edit plotted schemes

photo enforcement snapped a shot
ticketed me by US mail
said if I don’t pay the fine
they would send my butt to jail

when I look back on our red past
short in nature, blue in hue
you don’t miss what you don’t have
it all starts and ends with you

just because I don’t write more
doesn’t mean I’ve less to say
poems burn hot inside my brain
for me to blog on a free day

no way back

you stirred the dust and then you left

at this, you always were adept 

after saying things better left unsaid 

you pushed me too far over the ledge 

you dug that hole and you fell in

no caring if you lose or win

this time the cut is way too deep

I knew my love was mine to keep

it's always been this way with you 

you think that this will pay your dues 

the bridge you burn with just one match 

will leave you no way to get back

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

I recall

I recall a face\

kisses, sweet as wine

I recall a place
a memory in time

I recall a night
a million stars that danced
I recall a dream
of flowers and romance

I recall a wish
for a lover that is true
I recall a prayer
fulfilled when I met you

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