optimism
My Poem “Always”
My heart goes out to everybody
who is having to adapt to doing things
and to living their life as best as they can
in a vastly different way than they had
previously known how to
since all of the restrictions put upon
their interactions, the way that they shop,
how they work, and how they learn
were introduced in order
to combat against an unseen
and an easily transmissible enemy
that has seemingly brought
the modern world to a stand still.
My heart goes out to parents,
because most of them have had
to adapt to becoming not only
their child’s guardian and around
the clock source of entertainment,
but they have also had to become
their child’s tutor and home school teacher –
and in most cases parents are struggling
to be all the things that their child
needs them to be all of the time,
while perhaps also simultaneously
having to juggle the responsibility
of being a supportive partner.
My heart goes out to the children
of this generation who want to learn
and who dream of becoming something
and someone with a calling
and a purpose in life to be fulfilled…
my heart goes out to those families
who are having to share their one
and only means of accessing the Internet
and those who are having to take it in turns
to seek out some kind of escapism
from the stark reality of world events
in any way that they can.
One thing that is undeniable
is that life is hard for people right now,
and the world, unfortunately,
seems more fragmented than ever;
however, whenever I see new art being created,
whenever I hear of new music being shared,
whenever I find out about new
innovations that are being made,
whenever I look beyond the shores
of my island home,
I am reminded of how resilient the human spirit is –
which is why I do not stop myself
from believing that with a little time,
patience, and perseverance
the human race will one day
collectively come out from
the shadow of this dark era
more resolute than ever,
stronger than ever,
consistently riding the waves of change,
because we have always been a species
who no matter what has always found a way.
My Poem “All will never be lost”
A new burst of sunlight
enlightens my view…
a new year has arrived
that will herald the arrival
of something that will enable
the world to slowly become renewed…
a new wave of possibility is beginning
to drift over and upon humanity
that will hopefully lead to us all
once again looking to an optimistic future
beyond the here and the now.
New additions to already established families
all around the world are being
welcomed with open arms
as symbols of hope of a new generation
who will be the beneficiaries of
what previous generations have
had to overcome, have had to adapt to,
and have had to discover along the way,
and a new constellation of distant
beacons of light will be what everybody
needs to fuel all the new ideas
and the new inventions that will
revolutionise how everybody
will stay connected to one another
as well as on another level of consciousness
with who and what once was.
A new dawn is the start of new verse
within the constantly evolving poem
and chronological story that is life –
so even though there may not have been
as many fireworks set off to end one year
and welcome in a brand new one this year
as there might have been in years gone by
there is always a reason to stay hopeful,
to look up, and to believe
that if everybody does their part
and continues to work hard at being
inspirational in their own way
all will never be lost.
Happy New Year! 😊
My Poem “There is always hope”
When you are a child
there is no more magical
and joyful moment of your life
than around Christmas time
when you get to write a letter
to a man in a red suit, with a white beard,
who on Christmas day will deliver
all that you have been asking for
for perhaps all of the previous months of the year –
and under normal circumstances
there is no one more popular
than the ever jovial Father Christmas/
Santa Claus/Saint Nicholas himself
who children dream about, write to,
and draw pictures of, as well as his
ever present reindeer and his trusted elves.
Christmas is for everybody…
Christmas is full of positive, possibilities,
and you truly start to get into the Christmas spirit
as soon as you start to hang the decorations
upon your newly bought or perhaps your
perennially rediscovered Christmas tree…
Christmas is a season for hope,
optimism, friendship and family…
Christmas is when people need
other people more than anything –
and the greatest gift that you can
give anybody is your time,
because not only is time precious
but it is also free.
Christmas time can sometimes be hard –
even when their isn’t a dark cloud
hovering over every one in every country –
and so many people do not have
the opportunity to be with somebody
on December the 25th,
which is why everybody young and old
need to remind themselves why it is
important to be there for those
who we are blessed to know
as well as for those who may now know
and who may live on their own…
Christmas time should be hopeful
and without fears and tears…
Christmas time should be about
showing love, as well as about being
happy and merry while listening
to Christmas songs that have endured for years…
Christmas time is a wonderful time
that is capable of making anybody
of any age feel as if they are a child…
Christmas time is a whirlwind
of emotions at the best of times,
however when people are at their most
in need of something and someone
to believe in they can look no further
than to whomever matters the most to them
to give them the gift of a Christmas star
to enlighten and to signal that
even on the darkest of nights
there is always hope.
Merry Christmas! 🙂🥳🎄🎊🎋
My Poem “The Merry Go Around”
Enlivened by the bright blue sky,
enlightened by the sublime sunshine,
entertained by the festive music filling the air,
entranced by the revolutions
of the red and gold merry-go-round,
as I stand with a cup of
hot chocolate in my hand,
as the world around me
feels like I am underneath a clear dome –
like that of an enclosed globe
just waiting to be turned upside down
so that there can be a a flurry of snow –
everything feels like it should be
at this time of the year,
everybody appear to be in good spirits
and enjoying the gift of the season’s greetings,
and there is a palpable calmness
as if everybody is catching their breath…
it is a wonderful sight to see
both adults and children look up
in wonder at the illuminated decorations
and the gleaming baubles
of the many Christmas trees
and to see people young and old
smile for what might have been
the first time in a long time,
because this year has been filled
with so much uncertainty…
there are echoes of the voices
of the lost to be heard,
there are welcome flashes
of hopefulness to be found…
there are whispers of a cure
for what shadows the present
coming within the near future,
as the sounds of hope ring out
in the form of Christmas bells
that inspire meaningful moments
of merriment as people ride
and as people are drawn to
the magical sight of spinning
Christmas Merry-go-around.
My Poem “Getting Ahead of Myself”
As a child, I always looked to the future…
as a child, when I imagined what would be,
I was always sure that things would turn out
like they were predicted to
in films and in television shows
that I watched which depicted
a world to come when anything
and everything was possible:
including vacations on the Moon,
underwater cities, and, of course, time-travel.
As a child, I was always hopeful
of a bright and inspirational tomorrow –
because looking immediately
for the positive of any situation
for me has always been in my nature…
as a child, I was like Luke Skywalker,
in the Star Wars movies:
always looking to the horizon
and always believing that anybody –
even someone as seemingly
bad as Darth Vader could be
redeemed and returned
from the dark side to the light.
As a child, fantasy worlds
drew me to them, because
what I saw and who I saw
had this magic to them
that had aspects to them
that were incredibly enthralling –
including: quests, adventures,
and other realities that seemed
wonderfully exciting.
As a child, real life was somewhere
where I interacted with my family,
where I hung out with my friends,
where I ate breakfast, lunch, and dinner,
and where there wasn’t such things
as flying cars, teleporters,
jet-packs, and robots who
looked as human as anybody I knew –
but I knew that one day all those
things that the television showed me
would come true one day.
As an adult, when I look around
at the world of the present –
while simultaneously reflecting
back upon the past and at what I used
to believe would be a reality
when I was all grown-up –
there are times when I genuinely
have to ask myself,
in the words of Freddie Mercury:
“Is this the real life? Or is this just fantasy?”
As I have grown older
and as I have seen and experienced
even more of the world,
my instant impulse to imagine
possibilities before they happen
is still my immediate instinct –
and though there have indeed
been times in my life when my belief
that the world is innately hopeful
and optimistic has been tested,
I will never be convinced by
anything or by anybody
to stop reaching for that which
seemingly lies upon a higher shelf of life,
and I will never stop being someone
who naturally and occasionally
gets ahead of himself.
Happy Star Trek Day: “Live long and Prosper”
Happy Star Trek Day, everybody!
The first episode of Star Trek premiered 54 years ago today, on the 8th of September, 1966! Happy 54th Anniversary to one of my favourite TV shows and franchise’ – which to this day still remains a source of inspiration and hope and is a reminder to us all that if the human race works together we can accomplish anything: even journeying out into the final frontier, where no one has gone before! Live Long and Prosper, everyone! 😊🖖
My Poem “Bandit”
I might wear a mask
but I am not a criminal…
I might cover my face
but you don’t need to be fearful…
you might not be able
to see my mouth but
underneath I am a smiling …
you might not be able
to recognize me by my eyes alone
but I hope that you can see
that I am not lying
when I tell you that I will
never stop hoping nor believing
that the human race can make it
through anything and everything.
How times change…
How different things can rapidly
turn from one state into another…
How often people have to cross
from one side and from
one lane to another…
How times of crisis make people
look around and want to comfort
each other when they stop looking
for someone to blame.
Events dictate our actions
and what we have to learn from
for our very survival…
our past self speaks to our present self
and our present self calls out to our
future self for them to forgive us
for some of the things that we did…
everything and everybody is kinetic
and nothing can stay static and the same
even if they want to because,
like a river, time never flows uphill…
in life sometimes we all have to grab
a hold of opportunities for optimism
and run wild with the new hope that we
have acquired and be like a bandit
in a world struggling to find their way.
My Poem “This is the way”
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.
Mark The Poet 