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

gone away

a candle lit in solitude
prayers prayed in gratitude
a heart in mourning for past days
of love that's here, then gone away

the candle flickers with the breeze
rustling loudly through mesquite
flickering, making shadows loom
soft but stagnant in this room

what was the thing that brought me here?
what were the options laying my soul bare?
another day when it mattered much
out of reach and out of touch

and yet the grace that is foretold
lifting my heart, enlightening soul
all past loves now lay to rest
and journey out for their own quest

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

Dog Tag

The last piece of you has been taken from me 

A piece that I thought was insignificant

But, I had it for so long 

that it was a part of me 

It was the first thing you ever gave me 

It was on my key chain 

from the beginning 

I saw it daily 

and it was a reassurance, 

a reminder 

I knew right away that it was gone 

And I searched and searched, 

but it is gone, forever 

Yes, the memories 

of our time together 

Will always remain, 

put in their place, 

filed away 

The anger and loss 

of that one little piece of you 

Tore my heart out, 

brought the loss of you back 

I cried at this loss, 

and from the emptiness 

that came flooding back 

This too, is now filed away, 

with the rest......closure

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

shattered

I thought I handled it really well, 

but I was wrong!

I lost my mind and my spark

while I bled in silence

shattered in private

but I wore that smile

and it lied so much better

than any mask could.

eventually, I stood

dusted myself off and dried my soul

put what leveled me in a hole

buried it, not too deep, so 

as not to forget;

but for a reminder 

of the tough lesson 

that I learned 

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

four more years

in the clearing I can see it

after the smoke has cleared

slowly, it comes forward

slowly, it's revealed

the engine moving onward

quickly it shifts gears

as he said it would be

all the left side fears

revealing deep dark secrets

the hidden accuracies

transparency is key now

and all that I believed

the way that it is handled

somewhat miraculously

it's like he has a playbook

or magic up his sleeve

yes, I can finally see it

the smoke begins to clear

four more years of wisdom

as greatness reappears

shushing foreign powers

from a heart that steers

advancing what he told us

at least for four more years

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

Love Haiku

"do you love me much?"
“more than my fly rods” you say
That is quite a lot!!

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

surrender haiku

surrender your love
surround me with your passion
swathe me in your warmth

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

Monsoon Haiku

I love the monsoons
lightning and torrential rain
washes the desert clean

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

blogger's lament

I wrote about love
I wrote about pain
poured it out
for all to read

I wrote about passion
I wrote about warmth
on moonless nights
when I was cold

I wrote about mountains
I wrote about the sea
the monsoon rain
and lightning storms

I write it all
I write what I feel
in haiku and prose
a blogger's lament

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

green

eyes of green, the darkest hue

an Irish temper through which rath spews

lightning or fire, thunder or rain

too many thoughts, in this full brain

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

enough

she told them her dreams and they said she was crazy

when she sat in silence, they said she was lazy

when she would lead, they talked behind her back

when she offered opions, they said she was lacking

no longer hearing, the storms deep inside

banished with silence, she took them in stride

choosing not to engage with anger or self doubt

she chewed on them slowly, then spit them all out

she studied more on balance, and when to let go

the moon in its phases, the ebbs and the flow

she learned just to listen, being true to herself

built up her courage that she had once shelved

avoiding the ones, that tried to belittle

that wasted her time, making her soul too brittle

she wasn't too quiet, too prideful or meek

but was strong and resilient, and ideas she did speak

she wasn't too little, more like just enough

she polished the diamond, ridding all the rough

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

silent screams

I lift my head, the tiara slides
from my eyes the tears now glide
trusting no one, only me
what I know, what I believe

in the heavens, clouds make forms
from the hives the bees now swarm
mine for an hour, not for days
leaving me in many ways

never in heaven, when I do pray
skies not blue but dark, dark gray
I'm not one to believe in luck
sometimes love can truly suck

if I find the answer, I'll let you know
smoke drifts up from stone cold coals
when I awake from this bad dream
my throat is dry with silent screams

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

just a girl

I know I was not the one to set your heart on fire
infatuation lays in dust with days long since expired
I wasn't close to being the dream you wanted to come true
I'm just a girl, who long ago, fell deeply in love with you

I'm not the key that fits the lock and opens up a door
Nor did I have the power to give, all you wanted and more
there was just no miracle or wishes upon a star
I'm the one in the rear view mirror, when you drove off in your car

when you look back and wonder if you had gone that way
will you see the promises of what you held at bay
I wasn't close to being the dream you wanted to come true
I'm just a girl who long ago fell deeply in love with you

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

Falling

I’m falling from heaven
The angel’s grasp, I slip through
Reaching and clawing
With nothing to clutch to

Clouds that can not save me
As I hurtle quickly to earth
Closer to certain peril
Closer to hitting the dirt

Picking up momentum now
As the fall speeds quickly on
Life passes now before me
And the things that I did wrong

The doors that once were open
Are shut tight and barred
Limbo is no longer
Hell’s door is ajar

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

No Surrender

I thought that you might be the knight
The colors waved seemed true
removing the fortress around my heart
On a black steed you rode through

Not a damsel in distress
My world was pure and good
No need for any rescue
I knew just where I stood

The many colors you displayed
Were from damsels before me
The lance you carried pierced their hearts
But I refused to see

The fortress before was so secure
No chance of penetration
The knowledge that I learned before
Protecting my heart’s foundation

The damage that’s been done here
May never be repaired
There may be too much carnage
From the short time you were there

I will need a deeper moat
A wall that can’t be breached
For my self preservation
For a heart that won’t be reached

My heart will not surrender
It will stay locked up in the tower
Never trusting, never loving
Never to be empowered

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

feelings

I denied you nothing
going into dark crevices
that had never seen light

you spoke to me with rhyming prose
I answered you with feelings
that never hit their mark

darkness returns to those places
tactical senses falling back inward
drowning in that fog

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

atmospheric pressure

my heart is a jet 
yours; atmospheric pressure
air too thin for lift

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

cool breeze

I'm not asking that you burn a bridge
for greener pastures on the other side
second look, second chance
exploring valleys at the foothills

I'm not asking that you hurry on past
where you once sped, eyes straight ahead
keep the door open and the windows down
a cool breeze may be all you need

what I'm asking is that you stop and reflect
savor the moments, and ease your mind
walk with me down a very long trail
before you go so far that it's yesterday

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

wine

it's like a fine, fine bottle of wine
opened to breathe before you drink
you admire the beauty--that dark, rich color
and savor that redolent smell
your taste buds start to water
for that first sweet, sweet sip
carefully, by the crystal stem
it is raised to expectant lips

but the flavor isn't as honeyed
as we had hoped that it would be
the clarity not as perfect
for the price of the bottle paid
and what falls to the bottom
the sediment, if you will
goes there for a reason
they're the dregs poured down the drain

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

intertwined

I wake in your arms
your love intertwined with mine
as the morning dawns

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

the mirrored image

the image I portray 

reflections of a façade 

oblivious,  

by those that I meet 

hairline cracks

cavernous crevices

hard to read;

you have to

looked much deeper

to know the real me

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

nights of wonder

sleepless nights, reckless days
moving swiftly through this faze
not slowing down, shooting from the hip
black and blue cause it kicks a bit

one step forward and two steps back
praying for guidance when I'm off track
it seems no matter what I do
all paths lead me back to you

fighting the urge to buckle under
when dreams return from nights of wonder
always with the light of day
the reasoning behind why I pulled away

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

dance

arm tight around my waist
as the music starts to play
not an unfamiliar stance
again we start this dance

this time no partner cuts
the ending not abrupt
we complete the dance begun
it doesn't come undone

we finally get it right
we dance into the night
steps perfected, not new
my last dance with you

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