so many times

so many times, I draw the line
you stepped over just in time
reading into all the rhymes
purveyor of all that could be fine

so many times, I turned to go
all that truth that didn’t show
tossing lines both to and fro
hugging hard and loving slow

so many times, just one more chance
weighing what is circumstance
the queen of hearts asked you to dance
what follows is a wild romance

so many times, I questioned all
it lasts from spring into the fall
you take my heart but drop the ball
the dream not quite as I recalled

with shaded eyes you turn away
live to love another day
I wanted to go and yet I stayed
the queen of hearts now fades away

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

lovable

if you can help me over icy patches
the times of doubt or shouting matches
anything to tether and make this last
I can be that lovable

not insecure but in a mind set
baggage free is what you get
if my love you will accept
and not burst this bubble

lay me down and make it so
covered with love that lasts and grows
better or more than I"ve ever known
I am worth the trouble

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

Love That Lasts

It’s the feeling that you give me
The things that you can see
The promise of something special
Existentially

It’s the things that you speak
Everything that’s deep
Nothing in disguse
That my heart has memorized

Hearts that now have intertwined
Part of my soul, part of my mind
All I’d lost I now have found
With your love that does surround

Love that lasts, a future that’s new
All the things I’ve found with you
All you give, I return tenfold
All because my heart you hold

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

between the lines

I sing the words
between the lines
the lyrics yours
the music mine
somehow, the beat
is out of time
and we can't dance
to the initial rhyme
someone cuts
as the tempo climbs
the wine not sweet
from the bitter vines

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

haiku you

I composed an ode
the subject, all about you
feel between the lines

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

no relief

I told you the truth and it didn't set me free
I lived a lie and it's killing me
I spilled it all, told you every word
you turned your back and pretend you heard

it rose high in the sky with the mornin sun
it came back to haunt... all I've said and done
I prayed to the wall about rattles in my brain
no relief came...nothing masks my pain

did you love me for a minute underneath the moon?
did I leave a mark deep inside of you?
was it only on the surface or hidden in your heart?
was there anything there after all of our starts?

tomorrow comes and it's like yesterday
I write the same words with the same refrains
somehow I think it will make you realize
that I was smart enough to read between your lines

I told you the truth and it didn't set me free
I lived a lie and it's killing me
I spilled it all, told you every word
you turned your back and pretend you never heard

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

manna

like an over-ripened fruit
juices freely flow
pooling, sticky on the tile
solitary footsteps tracked through

look over your shoulder
a dim light beckons from
a splintered door
what you controlled
the things you held
still worthy of the price

wandering the desert floor
forty days and nights
hungry for the taste of manna
and all that you were promised

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

footsteps

I may be light, but my footsteps will leave
deep imprints on your soul
you will still know that I was there

that for awhile we walked in the sun
that for a short time we loved
that for a minute, love was perfect
that there will never again be
anything like this

that is how memories are created
that is the dream that was realized
that is the song that we all want to sing
and the dance we wish to do forever

wishes

this day starts with wishes
from people that I know
starting this birthday
with a very special glow
friends and family
the ones that I hold
tight in my heart, and
whom I will never let go


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

My Birthday Haiku

Celebrating me

I am blessed with oh so much 

Spirits soar today! 

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

Birthday

at the stroke of midnight

another year blows past 

like dust in the wind 

like fire burns to ash 

reflecting on it all

what is now yesterday 

the lessons that I've learned 

memories that were made 

would I change any one moment

 if I had the chance? 

let me think for a second

NOT ON YOUR LIFE

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

Memorial Day

their last flight in a flag draped box

finally home to those they loved

a foreign land that took their life

right or wrong they payed the price

'honor those that went too young
uniforms soiled with blood and debris
youth left on a battlefield
moving forward, refusing to yield

resting now in eternal sleep
flags lined up in many a row
headstones whitewashed in the sun
leaving before your life had begun

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

Mea culpa

I'll say it was my fault

if it makes things all better

I'll put it in text

or send you a letter

whatever it is

that you need to hear

just ask me the question

in back of your fears

apologies come easy

when you don't know what's wrong

did I not hold you close?

maybe I smothered to long

if I don't ask the questions

the truth will stay hidden

is it a big secret?

is questioning forbidden?

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

Jack and Jill

in the blink of an eye

it all slides downhill

tumbling over and over

like Jack and like Jill

all dirty and dizzy

when you finally stop

and now it's not easy

when you try to stand up

what was the reason

your world did a spin?

where you looking out

or trying to get in

it doesn't really matter

which end is up

if the glass is halffull

or there's a crack in your cup 

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

between the lines

I'm reading every line
and what is inbetween
I'm savoring it all
exploring my own meaning
this story is very different
without the turns and twists
sounds like a beginning
at least that is my gist

not a country song
bout how she done him wrong
more like a little ditty
a lyrical love song
lay it out with music
it'd be my favorite melody
for now I keep on reading
dreaming it's about me

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

everlasting

smile that everlasting smile
that will bring you near to me
sing an everlasting song
lyrics that you wrote for me
give me that everlasting look
eyes that are shining for me
I will give you all my love
if you give all of yours to me

if you think that it's not true
if you think I don't believe
if you think it's only words
if you think you heard it wrong
listen closely to my heart
hear the verses of my song
look in my eyes and you will see
everything I feel is real

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

a friend

on this bumpy road

which we all travel,

sometimes smooth; most times gravel

the ones I meet along the way

I may not talk to everyday

thtough the good times

or times of strife

a friend for a minute

a friend for life

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

worry

your blue eyes troubled

the worry lines deep

the past lays mounded,

deep at my feet

I try so hard

to clear the air

the more I say

adds more despair

what is is that

you need me to say

to remove the stress

put all at bay

I tell the truth

but you have doubts

I don't understand

what this is about

a troubled girl

even as a child

letting loose the fury

inside laying piled

be soothed my girl

I'll tell all I know

answering truthfully

to waylay the load

have I done more harm

than adding what's good?

did I interject

more than I should?

did I make you smile

more than make you cry?

did I not love enough?

please tell me why!

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

connected

you wanted to know everything
right from the very start
the pearls and all the grit
that set my soul apart
the snarky little comments
my wide and happy  smile
I told you all my truths
and emptied every file

you asked me many questions
your charms were so intent
leaning in and whiffing
my No5 sweet scent
a twinkle in your blue eyes
a very sexy grin
and that's the moment I knew
that you would do me in

one date to another
our conversation flowed
over wine or coffee
in sun or the moon's glow
holding hands and learning
the secrets and perspective
listening and loving
that's how we connected

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

Escape

I could have made a clean get away.
Turned and walked.
Never looked back,
But I didn't.

I could have held back the tears
Never resisting.
Never saying a cross word
But I didn't.

I chose to stay,
Connected and tuned in.
Feeling, caring, reacting.
Escaping only in my mind.

around the corner

the road to tomorrow is paved with the past
I step to the left as the dye bleeds fast
you touched my body, I couldn't touch your heart
not in the middle and not from the start

a whisper of truth that cools with its breeze
love wraps around me with new energy
all that I longed for, that I didn't see
was waiting around the corner for me

connected by passion, the heat of your song
all that I gave, stuff you drag around
I keep my dreams...you keep what you found
we both end up where we always belonged

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

all too soon

illusion drips from swollen sky
thunder crashes in the night
there’s no hope of staying dry
I shout a prayer, there’s no reply

poetry and visions creep
inside my brain that tries to sleep
shaking all of the beliefs
nothing sacred here for me

madness wanders to and fro
down this unsigned, dusty road
on my mind, this heavy load
intuition thick with mold

my third eye that’s partially blind
ghosts that hide here in plain sight
it could all work out just fine
if I open my heart and close my mind

another dance, another tune
another one of love’s buffoons
the calendar marks the month of June
it will be over all too soon

mama

with gnarled fingers you fix a bow
gently touch a little nose
hold her tight a second more
before she's running out the door

reading stories till it's late
worrying about her very first date
thinking back when she was small
seeing notches on the wall

a mother's love with all you do
this was once all done for you
close your eyes when all is safe
worry lines that won't erase

no longer can I touch your face
gone for good your warm embrace
I would like just one more time
to feel the love that once was mine

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

Vacant

the ifs and the whys
remain unanswered
no closure will come

adrift, once again
the place you held in my heart
vacant

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

confessions

at the time of my confessions
when no one can hear me
when my needs are deepest
when I’ve lost all belief
sweating out the danger
in the depths of my despair
a mind that travels backward
on a trail that was unfair

the ferocity of the moments
a roadmap with no plan
with faithless understanding
staggering like a blind man
this avalanche of anger
termites eating my soul
slipping from those moments
into Alice's black hole

I'm looking through the window
at the hellish burning flame
always on the outside
but I hear them call my name
in the sorrows of the evening
on a chilly winter night
the loneliness continues
this dream that conjures fright

drenched with trepidation
as I shake myself awake
from this master plan of sorrow
a tale where I remain

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