Poetry is my constant…
Poetry is my passion…
Poetry is what I see, hear,
and feel every morning
from the moment I wake up…
Poetry is what always gives me
a sense of peace amongst
the sometimes chaotic and turbulent
waves of the world that deliver inspiration to me…
Poetry is the power of words that makes
Earth continue to orbit around the sun;
poetry is what makes our solar system of planets
situated within the perfect cosmological place
encircling upon the outer rim of our galaxy;
poetry is what makes us stand out amongst
the other civilisations of the universe -
even though we do not yet realize it…
Poetry is magic… Poetry is timeless, and yet timely…
Poetry is what binds us all together -
because poetry is beyond what people think it is,
because poetry is beyond words;
because poetry is capable of expressing things
and opening up the heart, the mind, and the soul
of writers and readers more than they can know…
Poetry is special, and you know it when you read it
and whenever you happen to see it…
Poetry is not meant to be constrained,
Poetry is meant to be consumed
and assimilated into who and what we are
are it should be allowed to change us
in the best ways possible,
because poetry is a form of art
that never stops being true and inspirational…
Poetry knows no bounds and it is
the only way I know to say so much with so little
but leave an impression as wide and as deep
as the biggest of meteorite craters…
Poetry was always meant for me
to be drawn to it so that I may use it
and make it my own, and so that I may share it
in countless ways to inspire others
to see the world through a different lens
and gain a new sense, perspective,
and understanding about the nature of language
and the meaning of life and the underlying
cycles of repetition that govern space and time
in this universe and every other in existence…
Poetry is what was; Poetry is what is;
Poetry is what there always will be,
even if there is a time to come
when humanity commits the greatest sin imaginable to itself -
poetry will always be there for someone
like me to see, hear, feel, and write about;
because whether it’s here on Earth,
or perhaps somewhere else,
there will always be someone
who is meant to be the embodiment
of the “Poet of Tomorrow”.
hope
My Poem “Count to Ten”
I was once a poet of a single poem…
I was once a dreamer of a dream…
I was once a rambler of fields of gold…
I was once a boy who loved, who laughed,
and who saw the world with an eternally optimistic eye…
I was once a believer in everything that I saw,
everything that I heard, and in everyone whom I met;
however, over time, I was struck
by multiple instances of unpredictability
that changed the course of my life forever…
I can still remember who I was and where I was
when so many of the things that happened
to me left their mark upon me…
I can can still remember writing that first verse,
that first step, that first gift of adoration and love
which was the spark of inspiration that I needed
to start the fire of creativity within me
that has only grown in size, heat, and ferocity,
as I have allowed myself to evolve as a writer
and as an author into whatever, whomever,
wherever I believe I have always been destined to be…
unlike some, I have never been afraid of words;
in fact, words are powerful and sacred to me
in ways that are sometimes hard to describe -
because words matter to me,
because words energise me,
because words feel so natural to me,
and whenever I write a collection of words,
especially poetry, I feel like I am writing something
that only I could write and something
that I do not require anyone but me to understand…
a sphere, a sound, a multiverse, a path, a story -
throughout each of my eras and experiences
as a poet and a writer, I have witnessed
change happen around me,
as well as change happen within me,
that has sometimes been challenging to face,
to overcome, and to experience;
however, I know that I have no choice
but to continue doing what I know I have to do:
to keep going, to keep dreaming, to keep writing,
to keep being fascinated by things and by people,
to keep my eyes, my ears, and my mind open -
because there are times when everyone
has to admit that things are different
from what and how they expected them to be,
and which is why it is always helpful in certain situations
to take a moment to look, to listen, to consider,
and then count to ten before making a decision
about what to do, where to go,
and about who they want to be
in the next phase of their future.
Christmas Poems: My Poem “There Is Always Hope”
In this episode, I recite one of my Christmas themed poems. In this episode I reads my poem “There Is Always Hope” written in 2020.
Listen, Like, and Subscribe to my podcast on Spotify and on iTunes.
Christmas Poems: My Poem “The Season Of Perpetual Hope”
In this episode, I recite one of my Christmas themed poems. In this episode I read my poem “The Season of Perpetual Hope” written in 2019.
Christmas Poems: Lights
In this episode, I recite one of my Christmas themed poems. In this episode I read my poem “Lights” written in 2018, which was included in my 2020/2024 poetry collection ‘The Rambler’.
My Poem “Hell on Earth”
The fires of hell
have been visited upon
the “City of Angels”…
lives have been lost,
houses have been burned,
places of meaning have been destroyed,
life has been irrevocably changed
for the people of Los Angeles –
and no one can do anything to stop
what is still happening,
nor can anyone turn back the clock
and restore a community to what it was,
nor bring back the beauty that has been lost.
My heart goes out to those who have lost so much
to a force of nature that is notoriously hard to fight…
my thoughts and prayers go out to those mourning
the loss of friends and family members
who did not and could not leave their homes…
my hope is that when those
who were evacuated for their own safety
return to the place they never wanted to leave
will one day be able to recover
from the trauma of the nightmare
that they are having to endure…
my condolences and my deepest sympathy
goes out to those who may have lost everything
that meant the world to them
and that which symbolised their love of life.
As I write this, people from all around the world
watch on as images of the seemingly endless flames
of the devastating fire that continues to burn unabated
are shared with countless others…
as I write this, families who fled to save their lives
are returning to the charred remains of their homes
and are having to face the darkness
of their new reality as tears fill their eyes…
as I write this, I wish that a miracle would come to the rescue of the people of the haven of dreamers
and bring an end to the destruction, the death,
the suffering, and the misery of those who have been scared by what has befallen
one of the most beautiful places in the world
and which has always represented
hopefulness and prosperity…
as I write this, fire fighters, as well as ordinary citizens,
work together and attempt to do what they can
to douse the flames and prevent any further damage
to the place they call home
from the inferno that has raged for days on end –
and I hope that one day somewhere
that has for so long been thought of
as a place akin to “Heaven on Earth”
will rise again from the ashes
of how it appears at this moment: Hell.
The Eternal Boy – republished
Get your copy of the republished version (hardcover version) of my third book, and my third poetry collection, ‘The Eternal Boy’, which was originally published in 2015.
‘The Eternal Boy’ symbolises another step upon my journey as a poet, as a writer, and as an author – as well as me attempting to capture the change and the evolution in myself that I felt I was going through at the time, and also my exploration of some of the many states that we all sometimes have to live through at different and varied stages in our lives.
There are poems within ‘The Eternal Boy’ that I think about all the time, and which I think perfectly capture who I am and who I always want to be.
Get the new hardcover version of ‘The Eternal Boy’ here!
-Mark
My Poem “A Poem For The End of The World”
There have always been times
in the history of humanity
when people have had to look at themselves,
when people have had to look at their surroundings,
and when people have had to look
at the faces of their loved ones,
and wondered whether this would be the day:
whether this would be when the world
would come to an end…
there have been times when nature
has taken humanity to a point
where and when the outcome of
what was about to happen was not guaranteed,
where and when no matter what protection
we think we have against an imminent threat
we know that the possibility of surviving
what is going to take place is not a given…
there have been devastating asteroid impacts
that have led to the extinction of entire species;
there have been epic storms that have caused
massive amounts of destruction and death;
there have been numerous instances when
attacks have occurred which have lead to fatalities
that could not have been prevented
nor predicted by anyone…
there have always been dangerous times -
when the world around us has felt
as if it were teetering on a knife-edge -
when there are tensions between
powerful nations capable of wielding
arsenals that could lead to
mass casualties and worldwide annihilation…
there have always been times
when we have been told to prepare for the worst -
during times of war, or when there has been
an outbreak of a deadly disease;
and when there is such a time
when the odds of survival might seem insurmountable,
and when the situation unfolding
seems too grim to bear,
everyone around the world needs
something and someone to remind them
that no matter what happens in life,
and no matter what humanity
sometimes has to go through,
there will always be something and someone
that will make the difference
and guide your way through the world -
even if darkness seems to have descended over everything -
and every time you return to them
they give you a little bit of hope
that you are going to be alright
and eventually everything will pass;
and if the end does come,
and if you need something or someone
to hold your hand as you make your way
through an era of potential dystopia,
then think of me and keep a copy of this poem
with you to read whenever you need to be reminded
of the importance of the words of a poet
and you need a poem for the end of the world.
‘I’ll Meet You At The Lighthouse’ By Mark Hastings – Chapter Four: The Beacon
‘I’ll Meet You At The Lighthouse’ , Chapter Four – “The Beacon”: the story of two best friends and soulmates, whose love for one another is tested to its limits, and whose one of a kind connection ultimately takes them both on a journey to somewhere beyond the horizon. However, nothing and no one can stop them both from fulfilling their life-long promise to one another: to meet each other at The Lighthouse.
Mark The Poet 