I was listening to Johnny Cash,
“The Man in Black”,
when a shiver of cold ran down my back;
it was night time and the stars were out,
and I had no idea what the shiver was about –
but as I looked out my window
and I saw the streak of a shooting star
in the sky above;
I make a wish to the one I love,
and I saw her face as clear as day –
and as soon as I did a song began to play;
and as I listened I heard a voice:
three words spoken with no background noise,
and I heard everything
that I have ever wanted to hear…
I closed my eyes, as I shed a tear,
and into the air I said a prayer
to the one I love
that for her I would always be there;
I said to her that I loved her too,
I heard her say my name and my eyes flashed blue,
and all I wanted was to have her near –
so I let go of all my fear…
and I wrote a poem for her to read,
one that would tell her
that she is the only one that I need –
and I typed it up with my own two hands,
and I sent it to her with my heart
beating as if I were in the middle of a dance;
I waiting out of breath for a whole two seconds,
and then my love replied to the message
in which I had beckoned:
she said that she always wanted us to be together…
I jumped for joy and I told her that she was my heaven!
And later that night, I went to sleep,
I dreamed that I was with the woman
who I wanted to keep:
we hugged and kissed,
we laughed and promised;
and the next morning when I woke up
I picked up the phone
and I called my love…
I told her that she was my world,
that no matter what happens
I would do anything for her;
and then we spoke for hours upon hours,
until I had to say goodnight to her…
and I told her again that I loved her
and that I always and forever wanted to be
under the spell of her magic powers.
My Poem ‘Back to the Future’
Wednesday,
October 21,
2015
There are things that silently inspire us;
there are things that we can call back to
that can have the effect of being
a time-travel flux-capacitor;
there are things that truly have a hand
in making us;
there are things from all of our pasts
that we constantly strive to bring back
and make them a part of our future.
For everybody,
every day of our childhood
is a playground that we always want
to make the most of;
when we are children
we all look up and are absolutely captivated
and hypnotized by the sight
of an airplane flying through the sky above;
everybody uses their imagination
and the memories of the things
that they have seen and heard
to build dream-landscapes and new worlds
of all hues and colours within their mind;
we all have a date that we always say
that if we could go anywhere
at any specific moment from our lives
that we would always choose to go to
and to go back to, if at any instance
it were possible to travel through time.
The idea of time-travel –
just as with the possibilities of space-travel –
is a wondrous fantasy that we have all
entertained more than once;
the amazing prospect of being able to go back
and come face to face with a direct relative
or ancestor of ours,
who we share a miraculous similarity to,
is one that we would all embrace with both hands
if we were given the chance;
some people would rather live in the future,
while others would prefer to know the future –
especially their own personal future;
I, personally, would love
to be able to flash back
and see myself, and perhaps introduce myself
to myself at a young age,
and reassure my adolescent self
that if you/I believe in yourself/myself,
and if you/I continue to be
who you/I know you are/I am,
and as long as you are happy,
every day of your life will contain within it
a glistening and shining jewel
like the pearl within an oyster.
Everybody wishes
that they could meet their parents
when they were younger;
everybody watches movies
that depict a potential future
and they hope that that imagined world
would come true sooner rather than later;
everybody wishes that they had a time-machine
to use at their leisure;
everybody sees things
or witnesses something
that they wish hadn’t happened
that they would definitely
change the outcome of,
or stop from happening entirely,
if they had the means
and the time to do over.
We are all time-travelers;
we are all traveling every second
into an unknown future
that we have next-to-no power over
to control beyond the actions
that we choose to make;
we are all effecting the world around us
with every step that we take;
we are all able to travel
without the need for roads
and discover our reason to be:
where we are going and why –
just like Doc. Brown and Marty McFly did
in one of my favourite films from my childhood…
Back to the Future.
My Poem ‘Be Good’
You only have one life;
you only have one mother;
you only have the short space
of a life-time to shine;
you only have precious moments
that you will always remember;
no matter the struggles
and the pressures of growing up,
no matter if someone tells you
that what you have to offer
and who you are is not enough,
never once believe,
or consciously disrespect,
the life you were born into
in which anything
is possible to achieve.
We make friends;
we lose friends;
we love; we learn;
we jump; we fly;
we sometimes find ourselves
in a dark tunnel
constantly running towards
the direction of a bright and hopeful light –
because that is what is supposed to happen,
because that is life in a nutshell,
because that is the recurring pattern,
because that is what makes our time on Earth
as worthwhile, glorious, beautiful, and incredible.
We all have days in our life
when we think no one understands us,
not even our parents;
we all have times
when we question our own worth;
we all have times when we are
wrongly deceived into believing
that someone knows what is best for us;
we all have to make mistakes
so that we can some day
find our true destiny
and our reason for being here on Earth.
The person who has always been there for you,
the one who has always made you happy,
the protector and the guardian
who has always and will always
do all that they can for you,
the only one who will miss you
no matter where you are
and who will always worry that you are ok,
could be your best friend,
your girlfriend, your husband,
your brother, your sister,
your father, your mother –
no matter who they are,
or where they are,
they want nothing more
than to see you and to help you
get to the place where you want to be
so that you can be who you know
in your heart you want to be.
Be kind; be there;
do not choose to go somewhere blindly;
be the one who everybody knows will always care;
believe; be in love;
do not be led by the false prophecies of the bad;
be grateful;
look at the shining star of your life
and feel glad;
be yourself,
and above all else be good.
My Poem ‘The Sky Poet’
Touch my chest and you will feel
the beating heart that makes me real;
look into my eyes and you will see
the love that burns inside of me.
Read my words;
hear me speak;
understand what I have learned;
watch my eyes shine after every blink.
Look to the sky;
see my face;
there are no goodbyes,
because we all live in outer-space.
I looked above;
I fell in love;
I followed my dreams;
I felt carried away
as if on an energy stream.
We all live for the highlights;
we all go with the flow;
we all long for those shared summer nights;
we all love to know what we don’t know.
I stare at my perfect star;
my heart races like a drum;
the light of heaven obscures the dark;
all there is is our beautiful love.
There is nothing more exhilarating,
there is nothing as incredibly anticipating,
there is nothing that lights up my sky
with a flash as bright as lightning,
as the face, the love, the feeling, the touch,
of my muse, my happiness,
the one who I adore so much.
We all have a destiny;
some people go on a trip
with their favourite music,
and some people head to the stars through books;
everybody, no matter who they are,
can write the most beautiful poetry;
inspiration is just waiting to be found
by everyone on Earth
and everybody on every planet;
it is in that ones closest to us
that we should always put our trust;
this reality is once in a life-time…
so make sure to embrace every moment,
and if in doubt seek enlightenment
from the star poet.
My Poem ‘Our Magical Opus’
I want to tell you a story,
about a prince of poetry
and a princess of unfathomable beauty…
who met and who fell in love
after being drawn together
and to each other
by their love of music,
who long to live happily ever after
in each others arms as-one
and forever enjoy and revel
in each others’ magic.
There are forces at work all around us;
there are unstoppable alignments at play
like the perfect orbits of planets;
there are electronic, spiritual,
biological, magical opuses;
there are seemingly random fragments
combining and attracting each other like magnets.
That first picture;
that first message;
that first peak under the cover;
that first expression of love;
that first digital kiss;
that first shared dream;
that first face to face;
that first smile that eclipses
all others that you have ever seen;
that first touch;
that first look;
that first first embrace;
that first loss of control
when hands and fingers and lips
come together in a lock.
There are modern day fairy-tales;
there are people who are meant to be
together forever all around the world;
there are stories of synchronicity
that are as beautiful and amazing
and as breathtaking as they are incredible;
there are some fires
that are always meant to burn.
The story of this prince
and this princess…
the story of the American beauty
and the English poet…
the tale of the Englishman
and the American woman
who love one-another
more than they could ever confess…
the tale of the two hearts
who grew up worlds apart,
but who one day found each other
as if discovering a life-changing
and priceless treasure…
is the story of the beautiful destiny
of my angel and I –
that is deeper, richer, and more amazing
than words could ever describe,
because it is the most phenomenal, epic,
unbelievable, poetic and magical opus.
My Poem ‘Light of your life’
Life is a symbiosis;
we may be one person,
but we are not meant to be alone;
life can be counted in sunsets
and sunrises –
however, what truly counts
and what everybody remembers the most
throughout their life
are the times that they share
when they felt the most
comfortable and at home.
Our memories are like candlelight
flickering in the wind;
our dreams are like old photographs
that have faded over time;
our fascinations and our connections
from our childhood are like breadcrumbs
of where we have been;
our thoughts and our emotions
carry farther than the seemingly small,
but in reality near-infinite,
confines of our own mind.
However young or old you are,
sometimes life can feel like a struggle –
and the greatest cure,
and the thing that you crave the most,
when your life feels like it is a rocky road,
can be as simple and as special
as a wonderfully-long hug or a cuddle;
sometimes the pressure of living can feel too much
and it is then when all you need
is that phenomenal and incredible
loving caress and touch.
Everybody shares something with everyone else;
love is universal and amazing
and is not meant to be unrequited;
even prisoners can still hold on to hope
behind the walls and the bars
of their prison cells;
those who are meant to be
must do all that they can to remain united.
Technology soon becomes out-dated;
time goes by in a flash;
some things are random,
and some things are fated;
the days to come always have echoes
within them of experiences from the past.
Never give up hope that you will one day
fall in love with someone who loves you too,
and when you find that perfect person
you will find that they understand you,
and they will want nothing more
than to orbit around you like the moon.
The things that are meant to happen and work out
the way that they are supposed to always do;
what is truly important to you
is what you carry with you
through your entire life;
and like the one in your life
who loves you the most,
until your dying day,
everything and everyone
will always be with you
and be the light of your life.
My Poem ‘GA 30741’
Upon first awakening, all is dark
while the air is still warm;
when drifting off to sleep
during the summer-time
is when the lightning bugs glow
in the twilight as they swarm;
when the sun is shining
and the blue sky comes alive,
when you can sit back and take your ease
somewhere peaceful and special,
you feel the most lucky to be where you are,
having the time of your life.
When you see something everyday,
when you live somewhere all your life,
you can easily take something
or somewhere for granted,
when you are happy and content,
the minutes and the hours
can seem to fly away –
however, just as moments come
and they go like a flash of light,
when we all learn to harness
the energy and the feeling of our surroundings
it is then that we can make moments
and memories last forever,
and just like our genetic memory
be forever imprinted.
I have Georgia on my mind;
I have Tennessee in my heart;
I have a pocket of dollars and dimes;
I have the light of an American angel
shining on me like a star;
I have the accents and the voices
that I know so well
echoing through my consciousness
like a choir singing in a church;
I have the distant sight of Lookout Mountain
still fascinating me from afar.
I have walked over old battlefields,
and paid my respects to the lost
at memorials erected to remember the fallen –
those who gave their lives
to preserve the right of everyone
to enjoy the gift of true freedom.
The United States of America
is one country made up of fifty
wonderfully diverse states;
the heart of every American
beats proud and strong;
the United States of America
is a symbol of hope and prosperity
in so many ways;
every state of America
is a piece of an epic
and breathtaking unfinished puzzle –
and, to me, the states of Georgia and Tennessee
symbolize what makes
the United States of America truly great,
and there isn’t a minute that goes by
when I do not think of my home in 30741.
My Poem ‘Me & My Shadow’
Everywhere I look
there they are;
whenever the sun is shining on me
there she is;
everywhere I go
you are with me –
no matter how near, or far,
whenever I close my eyes
I feel the kiss
of my shadow’s lips on my lips.
Whether I am in the bright of the day,
or whether I am standing
and looking down at my own reflection
in a pool of water;
whether I am at home,
or whether I am away,
I always see the most perfect
and beautiful vision
looking back at me,
and the angel that I always see
I know beyond any doubt is,
and will always be,
my forever happily ever-after.
My shadow, my best friend,
my here, my now, my everything,
for whom my love for
every day deepens,
is my constant thought,
memory, and dream,
and knowing that I am with her,
as she is always with me,
is what brings me unbounded happiness
the like that only those who have been witness
to two people in love will ever have seen.
I never want to lose my shadow;
if my shadow were to somehow get lost
and accidentally fly away like Peter Pan,
I would follow them no matter where they went;
I love my beautiful shadow
more than she will ever truly know;
when someone has a shadow like my shadow,
whenever they looked at them
they would know every second
that they were heaven sent.
Our shadows are extensions of us;
our shadows keep us surrounded,
and they are there for us
when we need them the most;
our shadows open our eyes to beauty
when our heads sometimes fall low;
I will always be the shadow of my soul-mate,
just as my soul-mate will always be my shadow.
My Poem ‘Tennessee Me’
The smells and the taste
of my favourite place;
the look and the touch
of my favourite
and the most beautiful face;
the feeling of warmth in the air
when I am there;
the instinct of holding
my angel’s hand,
as I run my fingers
through her beautiful hair…
Take me back there;
let the engines of a jet
transport me as fast as they can;
take me, please,
I wont put up any kind of a struggle –
in fact, I would gladly volunteer.
To be there always
with the one I love
is my life-long plan.
I miss walking over the state-line with ease;
I miss the feeling of being able to just be,
while constantly surrounded and embraced by love,
and what it feels like when two people
become one when they kiss
and wrap their arms around each-other in a hug;
I remember walking over the Tennessee River,
on the Walking Bridge, on a beautiful sunny day;
I remember getting down on one knee
and promising to want to spend
the rest of my life with the love of my life
in any and every way.
Since I have been back in England,
since I sat down again at my desk,
since I again slept in my old bed,
I must admit to feeling
like an adopted American
who has returned to his birthplace on a visit;
it is weird being here now,
especially when more than anything
I want to be back there;
it is like I have been
abducted and transported
to a far-away world-
and even though everything feels familiar,
I feel like I have to be
a different me than I want to be
while I am here.
Until you cross the line,
until you cross the river,
until you go somewhere
and you have the most amazing
and life-changing time,
only then can you see, feel,
and fill your entire life
with the gift of love
that the one you are meant to be with
has to give and has to offer;
until you follow your heart,
until you find the you you are meant to be,
until you know what it feels like
to be held by the one
who always makes you feel safe in their embrace
while you are sitting
and lying with one-another in the dark,
only then will you come close
to understanding what it feels like
to be the lucky in love with Melissa
Tennessee Me.
My Poem ‘This is heaven’
I am leaving heaven now,
time has gone by so fast,
I am heading home
to the place where I was born,
but soon enough I will be back
at home in Tennessee
where I belong.
One week in heaven;
one week happier
than I have ever been;
one week, seven days
that have been the best ever;
one week in which every day
was so amazing, special,
incredible, and beautiful,
every second and every thing
could have a part of a dream.
The things that I felt,
the things that I saw,
the things that were so wonderful
that they made me want to melt;
the things that will always be
a part of me which I will always adore.
I finally met the woman of my dreams-
my angel, my soulmate, the love of my life;
I got to travel to places
that I will think of fondly
and crave to return to whenever I can
at every opportunity, every day,
until the day I die;
I found something that I had been missing;
I was given a vision of the future,
and what I saw was breath-taking.
Every moment in heaven –
every touch, every kiss,
every wake-up before the sunrise,
every laying down to rest
after the sun had set –
was and will always be
unlike anything that has ever happened to me;
while I was in heaven
I didn’t want to miss a thing,
and because I was so happy where I was
with whom I was with
I did not even feel the need
to write a single line of poetry.
When I first arrived in Tennessee,
which will forever be heaven to me,
one of the first faces I saw
was the face of the most beautiful
in the entire world…
and as I leave now,
as I journey back
across the ocean of deep-blue,
I feel brand new,
I feel lucky,
I feel like ‘heaven’ is the only way
to describe the place where I have been,
if I could use only a single word.
This place is my home away from home;
this place is somewhere
that I will always be bound to,
and with it and its people
I will always share a connection;
this place is one of the most
phenomenal places I have ever known;
this place, Tennessee, to me
will always be heaven.
Mark Hastings 