My Poem “Sombre”

Life definitely feels different now...
the strings of life are definitely playing
more sombrely and vibrating on a more downbeat frequency...
life definitely feels like there has been
a conglomeration of uncertain clouds...
there is no music to be heard -
however people are talking about
what is on everybody's mind,
because there is a mutual feeling
of loss at the passing of the people's queen.

The people of the United Kingdom and the world
all appear to be in a state of shock
and remorse...
we all knew what happened
would happen one day,
but we were not ready for it -
but how could anybody prepare themselves
for a loss that feels so great,
it is as if the direction of the country
and it's people are aboard a boat
thay is now sailing off course.

People are walking around
somewhat in a daze...
people are not saying much,
but it is obvious how they are feeling
from the expressions on their face...
people are keeping calm and carrying on -
just as they have always been told they have to
after losing someone who meant
something to them since they were young;
but right now I think everybody
feels as if they have lost someone
who felt more like a family member
than a sovereign...
people come, people go -
but when you grow up with someone,
and you one day lose that person,
you naturally feel sad,
and the atmosphere that surrounds you
and everyone connected to you
who knew them also
is always sombre.

A Poem A Day #332: The Missing

“The Missing” by Mark Hastings was taken from Mark’s poetry collection ‘The Dreamer and The Dream’ which was published in 2015 by Zeloo Media. Check out more of Mark’s poetry online @ http://MarkThePoet.Me – all poems © Mark Hastings ● Buy Me a coffee @ https://www.buymeacoffee.com/MarkThePoet

A Poem A Day #331: Reading is Believing

“Reading is Believing” by Mark Hastings was taken from Mark’s poetry collection ‘The Dreamer and The Dream’ which was published in 2015 by Zeloo Media. Check out more of Mark’s poetry online @ http://MarkThePoet.Me – all poems © Mark Hastings ● Buy Me a coffee @ https://www.buymeacoffee.com/MarkThePoet

A Poem A Day #330: The Genie

“The Genie” by Mark Hastings was taken from Mark’s poetry collection ‘The Dreamer and The Dream’ which was published in 2015 by Zeloo Media. Check out more of Mark’s poetry online @ http://MarkThePoet.Me – all poems © Mark Hastings ● Buy Me a coffee @ https://www.buymeacoffee.com/MarkThePoet

My Poem “Her Majesty”

I will never forget the 8th of September, 2022 -
the day that I and the entire nation of Great Britain
mourned the passing of
Queen Elizabeth the second...
it had been raining on and off all day -
and for some reason when I heard
that members of the Royal Family
were rushing to be by The Queen's side
I had a feeling that we soon may be
witnessing the end of her reign.

When it was announced that The Queen
had died,
I must admit that I and my family did indeed cry -
because we had lived with The Queen
all our lives,
and she had always been
like a grandmother to our entire nation
whose image we had seen and carried with us
wherever we went and whenever we needed
to use some physical pounds and pence.

Things will never be the same again...
now King Charles III will take
his mother's place as the head of state...
now when we sing the national anthem
we will have to say "God Bless The King"
instead of "God Bless The Queen"...
this year The Queen celebrated having
spent 70 years on the throne -
70 years in which she showed true strength,
grace, regality, and a sense of duty
to her people and the country that she loved...
Queen Elizabeth II and I shared the same birthday -
the 21st of April -
and though we were not at all close in age
I always considered the fact that we were born
on the same day and the same month
to be something special to me, for some reason.

It is the end of an era...
it is the end of what is it being referred to
as the "second Elizabethan Age"...
it is the end of one reign
and the beginning of another -
but no matter what happens going forwards
nothing will be the same...
it is with a deep and profound sense of sadness
that I must write about the death
of a woman who was inspiring
and influential to so many people
in so many ways for seven decades -
and even though I was never lucky enough
to get the chance to meet The Queen personally,
I will always remember her as being
someone who every year I wanted
to watch the Christmas message of,
someone who personified
the importance of obligation,
pride, duty, legacy, and family -
which is why I will always think
fondly of The Queen, Elizabeth II,
Her Majesty.
Queen Elizabeth II
21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022

My Poem “In The Zone”

Usually when I am getting from A to B
from the West Side to the East Side
of one of my favourite cities,
when I am alone, I am always in "The Zone"...
usually I am quick on my feet -
but all the while I am always looking around
at what I see and what jumps out at me
as I travel down the many
interconnected paths and streets...
usually I am thinking, listening, feeling,
and taking in everything that every thing
and every one is constantly transmitting
and broadcasting like a megaphone...
usually when I am making the most of my free time -
when I am not watching a film at the cinema,
when I am not shopping in an
entertainment store or a bookstore,
when I am not writing in my favourite cafe -
I am just walking around somewhere
I know like the back of my hand 
and somewhere I could navigate with my eyes closed,
so much so I probably do just that in my dreams...
usually I do not anticipate seeing someone I know;
however, occasionally, because of mere chance,
coincidence, or perhaps by design,
I will be stopped in my tracks
by the sound of my name
being uttered by someone who knows me
and I momentarily find myself
at a loss for words until my racing thoughts
catch up with the reality that I see...
usually I do not have a definitive
direction
or a previously planned path
that I wish to travel down -
because like a bird that can sense
the magnetic field of the Earth
I use my instincts to draw me
to where the universe is calling me to be...
usually when I am doing anything -
whether I am walking around a city,
or sitting down writing with my pen
or tapping away at the letters of a keyboard -
I am on the hunt for inspiration
in all it's multiple forms,
and I am never left empty-handed
or empty minded whenever I return
to the sanctuary of my home...
usually when I am on the move
and making my time in the big wide world last
I am unapologetically and occasionally oblivious
to most things other than my thoughts,
because most of the time I am in the zone.

A Poem A Day #328: Heart to Heart

“Heart to Heart” by Mark Hastings was taken from Mark’s poetry collection ‘The Dreamer and The Dream’ which was published in 2015 by Zeloo Media. Check out more of Mark’s poetry online @ http://MarkThePoet.Me – all poems © Mark Hastings ● Buy Me a coffee @ https://www.buymeacoffee.com/MarkThePoet

A Poem A Day #327: Your Day

“Your Day” by Mark Hastings was taken from Mark’s poetry collection ‘The Dreamer and The Dream’ which was published in 2015 by Zeloo Media. Check out more of Mark’s poetry online @ http://MarkThePoet.Me – all poems © Mark Hastings ● Buy Me a coffee @ https://www.buymeacoffee.com/MarkThePoet

Writing: do what works for you

In this episode Mark gives some insight into his writing process and what works for him when he is writing, and also why it important to find your own way as an artist that works you – because not every writer or artist is the same. Mark discusses what is important if you want to be writer of any kind of success and of any style of writing, and why all writers do what they do and why they should.

Happy National Read a Book Day!

Happy National Read a Book Day! I have personally always been a lover of books and I consider myself so lucky to have had the opportunity to have now 12 books of poetry, short-stories, and novellas published for all the world to read! I hope today people will take the opportunity of National Read A Book Day to check out one of my books on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Waterstones, or any other good online bookstore and take a journey with me via my poetry or via my stories to a place, to a time, of people, of experiences that are personal to me in so many ways. Happy Reading! 😊📖📚