life

My Poem “Being Brave”

Mark Hastings Poetry , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Even while there are still clouds
creating a fog that makes it
hard to see what is going to happen
next and when things will once again
return to a state of normalcy
there are embryos of new life
growing within people,
there are sparks of light
sending out signals,
there are new shoots
of growth coming from old plants
continuing to revitalize
our thoughts, our dreams,
our shared existence, our planet.

Small pockets of happiness
have started to reemerge…
small gestures of generosity
are being made by those
who want to do something
for somebody else…
small pieces of creativity
are being found to bring joy
to those who are struggling the worst…
the smallest of things quickly become
important in a person’s life
and they can give those in need
unlimited amounts of hope.

There is always a way out
of any dark place…
there are always lights
to guide everybody –
on Earth as well as in outer space…
there is always somewhere
that we all feel safe…
there are always possibilities –
which is why sometimes
the strongest thing that anybody can do
is to remember to take every day
as it comes and if possible
to embrace the power of being brave.

My Poem “Bella”

Mark Hastings Poetry , , , , , , , , , , ,

There are so many beautiful
things that we see
and there are so many beautiful
moments that we experience,
but there are only a handful
of beautiful souls with a heart of gold
that we meet throughout our lives –
from people to animals –
who get us through the bad times,
who remind us of the good times,
who are there when we need them,
who look forward to seeing us
when we walk through an open door,
and it is the memories that we have
of these friends large and small
that everybody think back to
because what they still mean to us,
even after they have passed on,
is beautiful in every way
and the spirit of who they are
will live on and last a lifetime.

My Poem “The Spirit of Life”

Mark Hastings Poetry , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Whatever is within
must undoubtedly come out…
whomever is on the inside
must reveal themselves…
whatever remains to be said
will one day be said out loud…
whomever is usually free-spirited,
outgoing and who seeks the most
potent moments of life
will do whatever they can to
rebel and break free from
confinement above all else.

Whatever someone thinks
they know about themselves
the person who knows them the most
is their own reflection,
their own thoughts,
their own dreams, their own shadow,
their own voice, their own ghost…
whomsoever comes into a person’s life
will have an impact that cannot be
estimated or fully understood
until long after that first contact
grows into something meaningful,
substantial and it evolves
beyond to become something
deeper that can be shown.

Whatever drives the reason
for why someone does something –
something that was the initial idea
that created a spark into action –
will always remain at the heart
and will never stop being the source
from which every action afterwards
is generated…
whomsoever responds to whatever
they see, hear, feel and experience
are voluntarily and involuntarily
participants and contributors
in the process of maintaining
the fundamental stream and flow
of the spirit of life
that so many people see in others
and consider to be something important
that needs to be revered, cherished,
and never maliciously sedated.

My Poem “Eternity’s Ultimate Goal”

Mark Hastings Poetry , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The world of life is filled with colour…
the underworld is black and white…
the world around us is like no other…
the world to come is devoid of time,
perspective, reason, and drive…
the world of the now is where
and when we accomplish what
we are meant to do…
the world behind the invisible curtain
is where we reflect on what was
and what could have been…
the world of the present is
where, when, and how the universe renews…
the world beyond this one that is so
unfathomable from the reality of the tangible
because what people encounter
when they pass over is so ethereal
that what and who we interact with
would be similar to that of a dream…
the world that people see, hear, feel
touch and think about every day
is constantly evolving…
the world far beyond the clouds
is the next phase of the soul…
the world in which the living live in
is a journey with a definitive ending…
I believe that the world of the infinite
that awaits everybody is where people go
to find all the missing pieces from
their life that they lost in order to
fully understand what is the true
and pure answer that explains
the meaning of all life
and eternity’s ultimate goal.

My Poem “Continue to Shine”

Mark Hastings Poetry , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The sun shines down upon me
and I instantly start to smile…
the sun shines and I instantly
feel the touch of celestial inspiration
that has given rise to many
daydreams since I was a child…
the sun shines and I feel like a solar-
powered fountain of thoughts and energy…
the sun shines and every detail
that I see of everything around me
appears to glow even more brightly
than any colour I have ever seen.
the sun shines and I feel as if
I have literally been caught
in its tangible gravity…
the sun shines and it seems to me
as if every flower and every blade of grass
is lending its one unique voice
to the song of life and ultimately
teaching me a lesson about humanity
and about my connection to eternity.

The sun shines as people go about their lives
and as birds sing and fly
against an unbroken blue sky –
and within its intense rays
I believe that I can feel
a combination of the hope, the joy
and the resplendency that lies within
the heart and within the spirit
of all the things that combine
to make this beautiful world of ours
the jewel of the galaxy that it is
and will continue to be
as long as we who are the custodians
and the protectors of the diverse life
that resides and connects everybody
and every thing on planet Earth
maintain the light of the eternal spark
that with all of our heart and soul
will continue to shine.

My Poem “There are always possibilities”

Mark Hastings Poetry , , , , , , , , , , ,

There comes a time in the life
of everything and everyone
when there is the perfect
combination of the right place
and the right time
when the right individual
is touched by the spark
of intuition, instinct,
and by the power of inspiration
just enough to push them into making
and creating something new
that rises out of the ether
of the invisible energy network
that connects life on every scale
imaginable and unimaginable.

There comes a time in a society
when people start to reach for
one another and find a fundamental
and mutual connection that helps them
make sense of a thought, a dream,
or an emotional moment
that they have had so that they
can find a way to release
the offspring of ideas
that has coalesced within them
and has emerged into something
that somehow feels like
it has a life and a voice
of its own.

There comes a time when things
like art, music, stories, poetry,
people, attitudes, fashion,
entertainment reach an impasse
and they are recognized as being
inseparable, revolutionary
and as if they are all
waves of creation from an ocean
of consciousness that is
communicating the same message
of unity and of understanding
but on different frequencies
of perception.

There have been times of enlightenment
in human history – within the life-times
of such geniuses as Leonardo Da Vinci,
Michaleangelo, William Shakespeare,
Albert Einstein, or within entire
decades such as the 1980s,
when true inspiration, magic,
and incredible inventions of every kind
made it possible for echoes to be
generated that would lead to
phenomenal reactions and creations
which still continue to interact,
define, combine and connect with
many sources of life in sometimes
subtle ways that continue to daily
remind us all that there are
always times when there are
always possibilities.

My Poem “This is the way”

Mark Hastings Poetry , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

There are times when
some people can believe
that all hope has been lost…
there are times when
people cannot see beyond
the shroud of darkness
that obscures the constant stars…
there are times when people
walk through a forest of trees
and they cannot see a path
to the outside and back to the light…
there are times when
people have to dig deep and feel
for the source of the force
that shines like a beacon within them
and which seeks to cut through
the chaos of a moment
like a sabre of peace
that can be formidable if needed
to be used during a fight for survival.

There are times from dawn to dusk,
as the Sun walks the sky
and guides the lives
of billions of people
who are all seeking to play their part
in keeping the phantom menaces
that occasionally plague the world at bay –
however staying a course,
standing up against an adversary
who seeks to impose their will
over the innocent of society,
speaking out for those
who do not have a voice,
and saving the life of people
who you might not know
is the least that anyone can do,
and in the mission of those
who seek peace, harmony
and reconciliation with all things,
while walking with their head held high
and while basking in the light
of the living, is how it is possible
to be a force for good
in the world in some way.

My Poem “Rain Brain”

Mark Hastings Poetry , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

I’m not sure what
this says about me,
but I have always enjoyed
walking in the rain…
ever since I was a child
I have always found it
thrilling and cathartic
to walk through puddles
and to watch streams
of rain water disappearing
down metals drains.

There is so much poetry to see
when you walk across
a wet pasture of grass
or when you walk through
a cathedral of tall green trees,
because you get to experience
and to immerse yourself in nature
at it’s most fertile
and at it’s most lush…
there is so much art to be found
when putting one foot in front of the other,
while making contact with the ground –
whether it is within the resplendent
colours of a flower dappled
with glistening rain droplets,
or accidentally when a droplet of oil
from a car engine falls onto the road
and explodes into a rainbow.

I know that getting wet
for seemingly no reason
isn’t for everybody –
but to me walking, seeing, listening,
and learning about the world
and the way that everybody
is connected to everything
and how everything is connected
to everybody is just as
essential as breathing;
and no matter where I am,
or whatever I am doing,
the poetic heart beating within me
will always see and feel
time after time how amazing
it is to welcome both
the shining rays of the sun
as well as the return of the rain –
as long as the price to be paid
from them does not result
in the rising of pools
of sadness and pain
from the deluge of thoughts
and emotions within our brain.

My Poem “Thirty-Nine”

Mark Hastings Poetry , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The direction of time
is something that we
have no control over –
but what we choose to do with
the time that we have
is ours and ours alone…
time flows in one direction
like the stream of a river –
and sometimes the currents
that we encounter propel us
into the future both fast and slow,
but the answer as to where
we will ultimately find ourselves
no one can know.

Throughout my life
I have had to make choices
that would lead to influencing
what I would do, where I would go,
and who and what I would love –
and, in reflection, as I look back
upon my life and how I feel like
I have been remade time and again,
I realize now more than ever
that although I cannot deny
that there are things from my life
that if given the chance I would change
I am blessed to have the life that I have,
I am thankful to have the people
in my life that I have,
and I am grateful to have been given
the opportunities that I have had
to see the world, to have experienced
all the joys of life that I have experienced,
and to have walked a path that has
seen me realizing dreams come true
and finding answers to questions
that I never knew.

There is so much from my life
that I will always remember fondly…
there are so many moments from my life
that are still crystal clear in my memory…
there is so much from my life
that makes me who I am
that was gifted to me by those
who know me and by those who love me
who are inexorably entangled
with the poetry of my life…
there are too many things that I could
mention that stand out for me
and constantly remind me of why
I feel so lucky to be alive –
but I am eternally grateful,
thankful, and I am happy to say
that although I do wish
that I could do more to help people – especially at this time –
I am fortunate to have been given
the life that I have
and I am glad to have made it
to the fine age of thirty-nine.

My Poem “The Gift of Freedom”

Mark Hastings Poetry , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The beat of the raindrops falling
outside my bedroom window
sounds like someone is playing
a drum solo of some kind,
and the tune that I hear
is one that is unique to my ears
because it is being slowly conducted,
created and performed by nature itself
randomly and yet beautifully
and at a time when individual
creativity and ingenuity
seems to be at its most prized.

Grey clouds obscure the blue sky above…
people queue in their droves to go
shopping at their preferred supermarkets
and convenience stores –
however, there are definitely less people
walking, cycling, and driving from place to place
than there normally would be…
people are naturally trying to use
their time inside their homes wisely
by making things and by doing daily chores
while spending the majority of their time
surrounded by the same familiar four walls.

It’s good to do things…
it’s good to have routines…
it’s good to focus your attention
on what you can do to keep
the light with you and within
everybody around you shining…
it’s good to start something,
it’s good to finish something,
it’s good to repeat something,
it’s good to find meaning in something –
because sometimes by doing something
you can discover that that which
you have been looking for
has been present in your life
and has been secretly
inspiring your dreams for some time…
sometimes it is not until people
have to surrender to living a life
of incarceration, lockdown,
isolation and quarantine
that they realize what the true gift
of freedom is and what it truly means.