for what was

for what was a loving rapport
singing softly at my heart's door
a golden key opening a lock
surrounding--astounding

for what was a warm embrace
hands that gently touched your face
kisses burning into my soul
intensely--immensely

for what was my heart believed
the truth, a spotlight, now floods me
shadows hidden deep within
dwelling--foretelling

for what was that floats as a dream
never really what it seemed
as the key twists in the lock
rending--splintering

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

The Dwelling

In this very deep dark place 

Where all my secrets dwell 

I’ve gathered many memories 

Some which I’ll never tell 

Memories of love long lost 

Memories of hope 

Memories of yesterday 

And things with which to cope 

Always adding something 

More and more each day 

To this cavernous, deep, dark place 

Always locked away

rain haiku

and the rain that fell 

was not cleansing or gentle

it was only wet

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

fester

deep inside, where no one can see
things that fester, won't be set free
so many questions, so many thoughts
of long ago times and the trouble it wrought

simmering, just beginning to boil
reaching a point like a snake that is coiled
ready to spew from once silent lips
nothing in writing, not from the script

surprise from the one who lead it along
minding their business and singing their song
lyric that falls on my ears that won't hear
you once had the chance, when you were endeared

the days hurried forward with no time to waste
and you, you left nothing when you left in haste
water under a bridge that was dammed in the crook
and I wrote the ending in our CliffsNotes book

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

raj

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

strength

the cord is severed on the dangling rope
that once kept me connected to so little hope
here comes the part where I sink or I swim
finding if my strength will last to the end

the highs and the lows of days just now past
reaching for something I knew couldn't last
too little on one side too much on the other
like bugs in the night, with the light fly for cover

like a bumper sticker stating if you can read you're too close
like a firefly whose tail in the night gently glows
like a fire that rages and then simmers to fine ash
like a warning sign you read long after the fact

the cord is now severed on the dangling rope
that once kept me connected to so little hope
I find I don't sink and how strong I can swim
finding my strength holds all the way to the end

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

contract

you're the one that sold me on the crescent moon
a salesman selling ad space, a contract signed by noon
I bought it all with your sweet smile, paper signed with blues
filed in your work folder with other papers of different hues

I reread the manifest, I'm absorbing every word
note the missing feelings and the things not heard
no clauses for my escape, no way that I can purge
not enough of adjectives and way too many verbs

a contract of adhesion, consumer protection not offered
your heart getting richer, another added to your coffer
mine lays by the roadside with the to occupant stuffers
neglected terms and conditions without any other buffers

this contract that I purchased reaches its expiration
renewal not an option without terms coming to fruition
you are up the street, selling honey and aberration
and I'm reading the fine print with a whole new appreciation

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

have you ever?

have you ever wondered....
why the dawn is so red
why the moon and sun appear simultaneously
why it rains across the street, but not on you
why we choose to love those--
who don't love back

have you ever wondered....
why music affects our moods
why you can't sleep when tired
why you dream--
and where they go when they die

have you ever wondered....
what is around the next corner
why some lessons, we just don't learn
where love went--
and if it's ever coming back

have you ever wondered...

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

it's not about

it's not about the breath you take
or breathing in and out
it's not what gets you through the night
or what love is all about
it's not about the rising score
or who might win the race
love isn't about the breathing
it's who takes your breath away

it's not about the hoping
or saying all the prayers
it's the candle in the darkness
that's steady after it flares
it's the hand and heart you hold
after all is said and done
it's the promise of tomorrow
after yesterday is gone

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

Yesterdays

Who does your past belong to today?
Not me anymore since we parted ways
Constantly wondering if you’re doing ok
Thinking about our yesterdays

The timing was off when I was your past
Did all we could to make it last
That brief time still unsurpassed
In my mind there's no contrast

If we’d met later, at a different time
We could have made it, it might have been fine
The love we shared, complete, sublime
We were a shooting star after a rapid climb

Too much distance, too much space
Logging miles, to be in one place
It was worth it for your embrace
The look of happiness on your face

It wore us down, tired us out
Tore us apart, started our doubts
Too much work to go that route
That’s what the end was all about

I hope you’re happy, and that you're well
We both moved on the past now quelled
We could meet again, only time will tell
It is a thought that sometimes dwells

Who does your past belong to today?

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

in these moments

in the depths of your laughter 

in the fine lines around the smile of your eyes 

in the lilt of your words 

in the heat of your kiss 

in all of these moments 

love floods my soul

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

cavern

in a cavern
my petroglyph shimmers with color
prisms of inner feelings
reflecting in an underground pool
my thoughts tumble and scream
echoing against limestone walls
returning to me as a whisper
as a prayer
as an answer

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

lessons

you taught me things 

the lessons I learned well 

it's not that I'm not smart 

you know I'm quick as hell

an enigma to my friends

at most things I excel 

you taught me how to smile 

at the silliest things 

to enjoy a smooth latte 

it's a Starbucks thing 

and to enjoy a love 

the kind that your heart brings 

you taught me how to dance

as time moved too fast 

I knew you were here for now 

not how long we could last 

when the dance was over 

is when you turned your back 

the lesson I learned best 

was learned after you were gone 

no longer hearing you sing 

any of my favorite songs

the breaking of my heart 

that just keeps stretching on

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

fortress

you climbed the fortress
up trellises of vine
to capture her heart
to hold for all time
the tower a bastion
protected, secured
without hesitation
your vision unobscured
your mission was gallant
the plan was construed
knowing not resistance
from a love that was true
as you scale the tower
you know in your heart
a happy ending was coming
you knew from the start

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

driftwood

in my fortress by the sea
I ponder thoughts washing over me
under the moon, tide’s ebb and flow
do I stay or shall I go?

one by one the answers come
just enough to keep me numb
giving what you think I need
sometimes truth will make me bleed

like driftwood washed upon my beach
footsteps left, etched very deep
no wind makes them disappear
always present, always clear

I sit here in a very tall tower
looking down on what aspires
growing like the ivy leaves
intricate is the vine that weaves

the sun comes up and warms the sand
in this never, never land
is this love that glows with day?
why does night bring doubt my way?

in this fortress by the sea
I ponder thoughts washing over me
under the moon, tide’s ebb and flow
can I stay, or do I go?

smalltown Friday night

a football game under stadium lights

a nip in the air,  on this Friday night

our final touchdown, when the score was tied

a team that fought hard, with all of their might

a bonfire after, cheering on the team

under a fall moon, how brightly in gleams

hoarse from the yelling, the cheers we screamed

now on to state, a coaches best dream

a smalltown girl, 'round the fire we snake

a homecoming dance. with my favorite date

the memories that come, the ones we create

that live in us always, and never abate

a long time ago, oh, how things do change

with all of the schedules that we rearrange

some of those thoughts that now are estranged

but plenty of new ones that I have exchanged

a smalltown girl, that grew and moved on

until a resurgence of one of my favorite songs

the memories return, just as ever as strong

here in my memory, they keep hanging on

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

I had forgotten...

I had forgotten this part
this part where love is returned
this part where it wraps you in its golden warmth
where it slips into your thoughts and makes you smile
a remembered comment, a remembered touch, a remembered kiss
I had forgotten this part
the feeling when you said it for the first time
"I love you"...spoken with your lips, heart and eyes... 

yes, I had forgotten, how right this could feel
and how love should always

be just like this

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

touch and go

there is no more, 

nor is there less 

it's like Alice through the looking glass 

I circumvented one of the rules 

now off the table what left you unglued

back to the banter,

the touch and go 

an even keel that we used to know 

teasing thoughts and passion screams

in the dark on a tiny little screen

the monsoons pass 

and there's thunderless sky 

my way of saying 

it's now been put right 

you get closer to finally, 

nothing in your way 

brushing past the valley 

with our yesterday's 

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

linger

you look and you see
you listen and you hear
you touch and you feel
you breathe me in
and your taste lingers on my lips
long after you are gone

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

silence

the sheep all still masked

and blindly they follow

listening to the words

all muttered and hollow

what isn't being said

should scare them to death

this isn't said lightly

it's no empty threat

on a podium he stands

and then wanders away

ignoring the masters

ignoring stormy days

as wise ones prepare

for what will descend

history repeats

before freedom can end

so gather 'round people

please heed the call

don't think that it's nothing

before it can fall

you're paying too much

for the silence you devour

all that's at stake

just takes your brainpower

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

last call

here where your west was all but won 

you didn't ask anything, nothing at all 

on top of a mountain where you see for miles 

down to my valley where it was last call

I played it all out, a map marked for you 

from the middle of the beginning with all new false starts 

the trail had some bends that didn't get plotted

it rends just like fabric and it all falls apart

I got lost for awhile in the chambers of my heart 

couldn't find my way back into your open arms 

secure in my mind with an ego that bends 

and snaps like a twig under footsteps that harm

blind is the trail where roses are strewn 

words never whispered from love songs not heard 

insight doesn't enter, the skies remain blue

each line that was written lays North undisturbed 

here where your west was once all but won 

you didn't ask anything, I heard in my head 

on the top of a mountain top where you see for miles 

last rites are said as I bury my dead 

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

still the same

lucky at the casino, lucky with the draw
the slot kicks out tickets, printed with it all
I look at my winnings, it's not close to last call
I knew your were a gamble that wouldn't pay off

from game to game looking for the next hit
bells are going off inviting me to sit
others over my shoulder close enough to spit
watching how I play this game needing wit

like Bob Seger says when he sings "Still The Same'
for a little while, I'm caught up in the game
an eight hundred number when too close to the flame
it's knowing what to hold and when to walk away

lucky with the cards but not so much with love
you can't beat the excitement of this queen of hearts
I could read you like my hand, right from the very start
I knew you were a gamble, that wouldn't pay off

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

not for me

For that one shining moment
I thought you were mine
A fragile house of cards
Constructed in my mind
but I misread the lyrics
The song was not for me
I know it never was
Should've read more carefully
so I retrace all the moments
rethink of all those times
when once upon a memory
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.

blueprint

I thought it was all sorted
the truth from just the one
and you know I'm a sleuth
when there's work to be done
I'm reading between red lines
where clarity escapes

it seems the subjects twisted
this saga has some gaps


I think that the sweet breeze
blowing from mountains north
started way before
the band ever played our song
it doesn't really matter, 
when fragility's lost its glow  
my love doesn't have designs 
blueprint faded long ago

secure in what you have, 

secure in what you need
one holds on still strong, 

and one is hemorrhaging
one that's eyes are blind, 

one that's eyes can see
one that saw too late
an escape to set me free

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

love's not blind

only for you would I brave the storm 

leave this place that's safe and warm

rain that turns to sleet and snow 

winds that cut through heavy clothes 

to get to where you are 

only for you would I brave the sea 

waves that threaten to capsize me 

in the darkness of the night 

no moon that shines, no stars to guide 

to get to where you are 

only for you would I brave the past 

forget the ones that did not last 

open my heart just one more time 

knowing this time love's not blind

I will come that far 

and meet you where you are 

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