If we do not, sometimes, find ourselves
encountering a barrier between
where we are and where we want to be,
then how would we know if where we want to go
is actually the place where we are meant to be?
Because when we find ourselves
encountering something stopping us
from proceeding down the road
we know leads to the next step in our life,
the question is: what will we do to keep going?
What will we do to break through the walls
that sometimes rise up before us?
What will we use to make sure that
nothing and no one will ever stand between us
in our pursuit of what we believe is meant for us to possess and to embrace?
Happiness; the truth; peace; security;
serenity; light; love; dignity; discovery -
every day, some people are driven
in such profound, powerful, beautiful, and inspiring ways,
because they believe they are supposed to be
somewhere, doing something, for someone,
and they will do anything to make
something happen that needs to happen…
some people are always ready and willing
to be called into action when they are needed…
some people are so selfless that they regularly
volunteer to put their own lives on the line
for someone who they don’t know
and most likely have never met before,
because something inside them
is always telling them that they are
more important than the realise
and one day might be the last piece in the puzzle that brings order to chaos.
Despite what some might say,
it’s never wrong to fight for what you believe in…
despite how much some people might try
and drown you out,
it’s never wrong to say when someone is wrong
and you can prove that they are…
despite what some people might believe,
it’s never the wrong time to start something new
and to do what you have always wanted to do…
despite how much some people think you have,
or they do not have, everyone can always find
something, or perhaps someone, in this world
that can give them the best possible chance
of being able to make a difference in their life,
and perhaps in the life of others,
simply by having the courage and the ability
to never stop being themselves,
to never stop striking out when the need arises,
to never stop trying, striving, and sometimes fighting
for what they and others believe and know to be true,
to never stop learning from the mistakes of the past,
and never stop overcoming
what lies before them until it is behind them -
because sometimes we all have to do our part,
to make our mark, to contribute to the world
by going against the grain,
by rebelling against the enemies of freedom,
and by swearing to uphold the values
of the best of humanity,
and by showing what it is to be the embodiment
of what it means to be a member
of the always necessary resistance.
fight
The Storyteller: War of Words
“War of Words” is a poem taken from Mark’s 2025 poetry collection ‘The Storyteller‘ – now available to purchase in hardback and as an ebook from Amazon.
My Poem “Never Say Die”
Even when it is dark
and all that you see outside your window
is white, cold, and bleak,
never once close your eyes and ever admit defeat…
even when there appears to be nowhere
and no way to take one step forward or one step back
take it slow wherever you have to go,
because as long as you keep moving
the steps that you take and every move that you make
will not be your last…
to keep moving is to keep fighting…
to think of your heart within your chest as a fire
is one of the ways that we all need to stay alive…
every day is a test – however, some days
test us more than others…
every day those who suffer through pain
have to constantly motivate themselves
to step out from under their comfortable bedcovers…
it can be hard to get through things
when we feel that the odds are against us
and the situation that we face is grim –
but when we are faced with such a circumstance
we all need to look within and call upon our inner strength
to get us through the storm that we are confronted by…
whenever the weather is bad and our paths seem impassable,
we all need to be a rebel, we all need to keep calm,
we all need to keep going, and we all need to never say die.
My Poem ‘The Fighter’
It’s important to fight…
it’s important to never give up…
it’s important to open your eyes
and look towards the light…
it’s important to never forget
who and what has made you…
and, above all-else,
it is important to always have
something and someone within your mind
and in your heart that you love.
You may feel like you have reached
the end of the road…
you may feel like you have arrived
at the end of the world…
you may believe that there is
no longer anything more to be said or wrote –
and then a new day will begin,
the sun rises again,
and you can go from being lost for words
to overflowing with emotion…
and over time the hurt that you feel
from a painful experience that you have been through
you can learn to use as a form of protection
and defense… like a sword.
To surrender, to submit, to sit down motionless
and quiet can seem like the easiest thing to do…
to not make a fuss, to not fight back,
to not stand up from what you believe in,
because you know that your opinion
might be in the minority
can sometimes seem like the best way
most of the time to keep the peace –
however if everybody did that,
if everybody just took everything for granted
and they did not open their eyes fully
and truly saw all the people
and everything that is necessary
and important to know about our planet,
then none of us would ever truly
know ourselves… and we would give up
before we discover why we are all here on Earth,
and where we are supposed to be,
and what we are supposed to do.
In the wild… in the world of the wolverines,
the wolf, the natural predators of the animal-kingdom
of planet Earth that live in the woods,
in the forests, in the air, in the oceans,
in the deserts, in the places where
only the strongest is made, meant, able,
and accustomed to live and survive –
that is where the fittest, the biggest, the toughest,
walk, run, swim, feed, kill or be killed,
and who as a species have learned
over countless generations
that to be a true survivor
in this sometimes wild world
you have to be a fighter.
My Poem ‘Almost too much’
Life can be tough…
life can be mean…
life can be rough…
if you have seen what I have seen,
and if you have felt what I have felt,
then you will know exactly what I mean.
Is life really a game of luck?
Is life really a lottery
that we don’t know we are a part of?
Has life got to be hard
for us to understand how precious it is?
Have we got to struggle and fight
to know what this world we all live in truly is?
Sons and daughters
should not have to watch
their mothers and fathers suffer;
I know that life isn’t always fair,
but I just wish that all the love within me
and within all the people of the world
who truly care about others
could be to every cancer the most powerful cure.
I am hopeful…
I am romantic…
I do believe that the world, the universe,
is amazing, miraculous, and wonderful…
I believe that no matter what happens in life
the best thing is to not panic –
but that doesn’t mean that I do not fear
losing those who I love and who make me who I am,
and that does not mean that I do not
sometimes get scared
and my thoughts and my emotions
regress to those that I remember having
before I grew into the man that I am.
Life is a journey of mind, body, and spirit;
life is a storm of surprises, sometimes;
life goes by faster than you might think,
and there ultimately comes a day
when you look back in time
and you wish that you could relive
the moments that made you the happiest in your life
that you can’t help but miss;
life can be both a blessing and a test of soul –
it can sometimes take all your will
to keep you from losing your mind;
the days that you spend in life in love
and being loved are never enough;
life can almost be too much…
however, no matter what,
never lose what matters the most: your love.
