it is

it is with great depth we both play
it is with heart that I feel my way
it is with sadness trust evades
it is with hope it comes and stays

it is with chance a tomorrow looms

it is with mirth this crowded room

it is with heart a new love blooms

it is both ways I do assume?

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

quits

I called it quits 

when I hung up the phone

figured I was better

going at it alone

like a tumbleweed once here

now windblown and gone

more heartache from you

than I'd ever known

go to the closet

for my traveling shoes

pack a few things

leave the rest for you

maybe the closure

will leave me a bruise

next time I'll be

more careful who I choose

it'll take me some time

to rebuild my heart

I knew this before

the decision to depart

but ours was a love

tired from the kickstarts

always the understudy

never the lead part

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

always of you

in the lateness of the hour
after the sunlight fades to dusk
the moon rises high above the clouds
my last thought before sleep is you

dreams evade but sleep prevails
I rise early, as the dawn breaks
your side empty, a pillow unused
my first thoughts, always of you

whether you're here, or not by my side
whether your arm is around me or not
I know your thought is of me too
whether you can see me or not

bling

I don’t need bling
or a lot of flash
not looking for things
that will cost you cash
the thing I want
my only need
is your whole heart
and the love it brings

I don’t need flowers
or bouquets delivered
the ones on my phone
will last forever
just need you here
cause you want it that way
that’s what I want 
much more each day

really??

a very small dose
what you think will soothe me most
you still don't know me

all I know

all the old reasons are gone
faded like old photographs
a distant memoir
of what once was

we make new memories
I have little keepsakes,
ticket stubs and such
tokens, that mean so much

each remind me
of how we got here
to this place in our lives
where happiness
is all I know
Poetry by M.J.B. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License

simpatico

we are simpatico
in every sense of the word
you speak my thoughts
and I speak yours
my feelings are shared
your touch gentle
your kiss,
deep

yes, we are truly simpatico
in every sense of the word

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

tis the season

in the cool, dawn morning we walk
thigh high weeds
uneven terrain
field glasses ready
we hunt

the game changes
depending on the season
always, we two
walking and searching
rifles on our shoulders

deer season--we see javelina
javelina season--deer
no rhyme or reason
but together...
we hunt

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

I just know

there is nothing ordinary
common or mundane
anything that is average
since the day I took your name
from the day I met you
going back to that first time
my life changed forever
when I stepped across that line
all the walls I'd built up
bruises began to heal
electric when you touch me
and you are all I feel
quickly, is how it happened
I don't know why still
I just know I love you
and I always will

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

oh, yes

good at all you do
loving is your specialty
I'm a lucky girl

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

dragons

the lessons I've learned
and pages I've turned
took one match
for the bridges I've burned
there's no way back, took up that slack
there's no space, not even a crack
you give all that I once lacked
and for lovin', you have a knack

I was out and sometimes down
wrinkles caused by a big frown
then you started comin' round
those old sorrows start to drown
where'd I be if not for you
always happy, never blue
oh, the trouble we can brew
life takes on a different hue

you pull me close and start our dance
it's just like being in a trance
no other boy could stand a chance
slaying my dragons with your lance
never in my wildest dreams
would I change the scheme of things
rising to the top like cream
whatever that old saying means

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

things we want

the things we want that aren't to be
are for the best, just wait and see
His infinite plan, with you in mind
will come about in His design

look for answers, search for clues
observe all the many hues
under rocks and in the clouds
listen, it may not be loud

a simple look, a quick chaste smile
a nod or wink could be their style
don't respond and walk away
this could be the one that stays

the things we want that aren't to be
are for the best, just wait and see
His infinite plan, with you in mind
will come about in His design

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

coffee and dawn

I gave you all and then gave more
hoping and loving was no chore
I did it gladly, or so I thought
I shouldn't have invested
or heavily bought

putting my wants in the back of the mind
going for broke and running blind
shouldn't have worn my heart on a sleeve
knowing you would go or I would leave

once in awhile when the moon is right
I sit pensive here at night
I'm the one that left so quick
before the feelings got too thick

things look different in morning light
coffee and dawn without the blight
I surprised you after all
left at the first signs of fall

you will say, "she will be back"
there is nothing that I lack
you didn't know me all that well
what you saw would soon foretell


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

ponder

insignificant
a small spot in a large place
’cept when I’m with you

nebulous

nothing nebulous
all reasons clearly defined
discovering more

those spells

I’m boxing all that was my past
traveling lighter it seems
you were right ‘bout what I leave
sometimes gold just doesn’t gleam

if I forget something I need
I’ll dig it up from memory
I know that anything can be replaced
most of all that’s true of me

I’ve found that thing I looked for most
more than what I’ve left behind
one-sided feelings that were dumb
also silly and partially blind

a road that forks and leads away
from tears I cried for yesterday
it may storm upon these hills
but I’ve learned how to weather
those spells

a shooting star

flashes in the night 

 white-hot it falls to the ground 

black, the spot it held

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

energy

every nuance, everything that I learn 

every facet that you share of your life

the effervescence of all that you give 

refreshment that lets me drink you in 

the spark from the first time that we met 

electricity from that very first touch 

a beginning with a whole new energy 

fulfillment that grows inside of me 

my heart, that expands with all you offer 

my love, that I give freely to you 

a future, showing all that we can be 

as we entwine what's between me and thee

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

if I fall

would you catch me if I fall? 

I don't have much further to go 

with open arms and loving heart 

would you catch me if I fall?

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

surrender

put on this mask and enter the cage

forget the laws, remember your rage

no eye contact, do not engage

history burned, now turn the page

indoctrination of every mind

start with the kids already blind

no one able shall struggle, decline

your road ahead will be assigned

turn in your weapons, every gun

you'll have no need when we are done

if you fight you will be shunned

our web is big, already spun

rob the poor to feed the rich

we already own that little niche

don't be a baby, don't be a bitch

turn on your family, be a snitch

yes, indoctrination is our game

you only have yourself to blame

get close to fire, feed our flame

here is your number surrender your name 

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

truth

if what I read held any truth
if it was about me
instead of about you
if it was less vague
the things I contemplate
if there were two
just me and you
then it would be worth the price
and I would spend it all

well deserved

you open the throttle and ride hard
miles of open highway
hitting the potholes with your heart

just when you think, that you
are running on empty
your soul finds me

the road becomes smooth
your path well signed
a rest stop, well deserved

the sign says

adopt a highway
I choose the one to your heart
discarding debris

quips

to the east, you read every word
to the north, not a peep is heard
in my heart a deficit 
do I give more than I’ll ever get

on Facebook I leave zinging quips
on twitter, truth seeps from my lips
in between, there lives a gap
filled with lustrous, throaty gasps

in my prose I write with thought
sometimes loved, sometimes not
no music to the lyrics yet
write it soon ‘fore I forget

doubt

so many there before me
like rings inside a tree
each left a different taste behind
on your tongue and memory

how do I climb the ladder
that’s missing too many rungs?
how do I crawl inside the mind
where all the portraits are hung?

some have been deleted
but they left behind a trace
at night when you are sleeping
I can see them in your face

I dream of misconception
until the dawn’s fresh light
the sun shines on refreshment
a chance to get it right

trust lays on the coverlet
but it’s too hot to use
a sheet covers up a body
with one leg moving loose

I throw a log on the fire
lighting a candle so we can see
the shadows flickering slightly
on the wall in front of me

can I erase the legend
that all of them point out?
am I just another flavor
have you any doubts?