reading
My Poem “I love books”
I love that books are still being written…
I love that books are still being read…
I love that books are still being listen to
while people are driving,
while people are walking,
while people are sitting in a chair,
or while people are lying down in bed…
I love that books are still physical objects
that people from all ages can hold,
feel, and marvel at the art of
as they flick through their pages…
I love that books are still filled with stories
of characters that do not always have
an accurate description of how they
talk or how they look,
so undividual readers have the gift
of being able to imagine what characters
sound like when talk as well as
paint their own picture in their mind
of how certain characters appear…
one of the things that I love
about the act of reading, as well as
the art of coming up with a brand new story,
is the power that people have
to be able to generate figments
of their own imagination that are
reconstitutions of the familiar,
the recognisable, the known,
the big, the small, the significant,
and the things from our memories
that mesmerise us,
as well as so much more –
but, to me, it is the magic of words
that lies at the heart of why
I will always love books.
My Poem “My Poetic Journey”
When I first began my journey
as a poet, as a writer, as an author,
I was a self-proclaimed
“Poet of the Sphere” –
however, over the years, I would
definitely have to admit that
I have become quite “The Rambler”
and I am so glad that I am!
I am so glad that the spark of creativity
and imagination that first arrived into my life
over a decade ago still continues
to guide me to places, to subjects,
and to sources of poetry that I have
written about and I have included in every one
of my fiction and non-fiction publications.
Over the last ten years
I have learned so much about myself,
about the world, and about the art of language
and the magic of words that I adore…
over the last ten years I have seen things,
I have experienced things,
and I have written about things
that I could never have imagined before…
over the last ten years
I have met people who have influenced
the way that I conceive and understand
the world of poetry that we are constantly
surrounded by that never stops
molding and colouring our thoughts…
over the last ten years
I have made mistakes, as everybody does –
but I have also come to realise
that mistakes and missteps
need to be made in order for us all
to have epiphanies of wonder
that open up within our mind
like the petals of a flower
or like some kind of interdimensional door.
I have written hundreds of poems…
I have written thousands of words…
I have had a million ideas
since I first started writing
while looking for answers
to the universe’ most inspiring questions…
I have had many unforgettable moments
since I first felt the poetry within my soul
cast itself upon a blank page for fear that
if I did not my heart would literally burst.
Every time I write something
it always feels like I am attempting to describe
a profound vision or a vivid dream…
every time I have written a poem
or a story over the last ten years
to me it has always felt like
I were telling a story as well as
writing a chronology to capture
every moment of my poetic journey.
My Poem “Inside/Outside”
Sitting in the sunlight…
reading in the shade…
enjoying for the first time
in a long time the feeling
of the breeze against my face…
outside of a library that I have not
set foot in for months,
because its doors have long since been shut –
as have the covers of its many books…
I am making the most of some moments
of quietude, of solitude –
akin to that of a performance’s interlude –
before I have to go back to the hustle
and the bustle of the life of a city…
I am also sitting besides a fountain
that I know well and I have been entranced
by on more than one occasion –
and as I listen to the sound,
and as I watch the dancing jets of water
jump into the air and then
cascade back down into the pool of water below,
I feel calm, I feel at peace,
I feel lucky to be where I am,
and I make sure to try and take in
every detail that I see of what is around me;
because I just know that I am going
recall this moment of time again
one day when I need it the most.
The wind blows and turns the pages
of the book upon my lap,
but I do not lose my place
within the story that has me entranced…
everybody who I see around me
is noticeably taking their time
and going at their own pace of life
upon their individual path
that occasionally intersects
with that of other people –
even though most of the impressions
made these days are not meant to last;
however, for someone like me –
someone who sees poetry,
someone who hears music,
and someone who feels meaning
within the image of a single falling leaf –
there is always inspiration to be found
within every instant of being outside,
even though at times we have to stay
seemingly isolated, like an island of one,
while our thoughts and our feelings
bubble away, just below the surface,
on the inside, within our mind.
Happy National Read A Book Day!
Happy National Read A Book Day! I happen to have written and had published 9 books in paperback and as an ebook – ranging from poetry to short-stories to short novels – and every time I have it has been a phenomenally fulfilling and a thrilling experience; however, nothing could ever compare to the experience of writing, reading, living, dreaming, and breathing every moment of every word of every poem or sentence that has made it into one of my books! Books of all kinds are like children – and they can change you and the way that you look at the world, as well as yourself… and some books can also change the way that you live your life, and the way that you read some books can change over time – depending on where and when you are in your life. Books are doorways through time and space… books are gateways to different worlds… books can talk to the person within each of us and compel us to do the impossible… books are incredible, books are vital, books are phenomenal, books are magical! I would implore everybody who is anybody to daily pick up a book and read something they have never read before – or perhaps something they have read a million times before – and especially today on National Read A Book Day, and it would be amazing if one of the books that people chose to pick up and read were one written by my own hand and with the power of my own limitless imagination! All my books are available online from Amazon, Barnes&Noble, and The Book Depository right now in paperback and as an ebook – so what better day than today to check one out and read the wonder of what can be found inside each and every one of them! 😊📖📚
My Poem “Reader’s World”
There are books about everything…
There are books about anything…
There are books of fiction,
and there are books of fact…
There are books about possible futures,
there are books about the past…
There are books about heroes…
There are books about aliens…
There are books about journeys…
There are books about friends…
There are books about food…
There are books about cars…
There are books about paths in life
that you should choose…
There are books about the planets
of our solar system,
and there are many books
about the question of whether
there was, and still is, life on Mars…
There are books about celebrities…
There are books about authors…
There are books about cities…
There are books about nature…
There are books about animals,
mammals, insects, reptiles,
forests, jungles, flowers, plants,
predators, herbivores, carnivores,
extinct species, and there are thousands of books
about history, about archaeology,
and about all the different big and small
varieties that there were of dinosaur…
There are books about films…
There are books about T.V. shows…
There are books about dreams…
There are books about clothes…
There are entire libraries filled
with books from floor to ceiling
that are a treasure troves
of different worlds…
There are second-hand bookstores
that are entrances to many different
places where you can find yourself,
where you can find someone, something,
somewhere to identify with…
There are bookshops which,
when you walk into them,
instantly give you this feeling
of being welcomed into a sanctuary
of fellow book-lovers, book-enthusiasts,
and book-buyers, who understand
why books and stories are so important to everybody –
from young to old, of every sex,
of every walk of life, of every skin colour…
Humanity is a species of storytellers…
Our world is planet of infinite stories…
Some humans are natural born artists
and sharers of feelings and experiences…
Earth and humanity have constantly
been living in a symbiotic relationship
with one another since the dawn of time –
and since our ancestors first looked up
to the stars of the night sky
we have imagined, dreamed, and told stories about
what else and who else could be out there
looking down upon us from above
as we look up at them –
and I have great confidence and optimism
that our fascination with what we know
and with what we don’t know
will never stop inspiring all of us
to seek and out discovery
something that we do not yet know…
It is our collective gift of curiosity
that has always driven the human heart
and soul to want to create worlds
and tell stories for others to read
and to learn from –
which is not a surprise to me,
since we know that since our species
first learned how to paint
and how to record what was on their mind for others to see
we have been members of a reader’s world.
Happy World Book Day!
Happy World Book Day, everybody! From me and my books – at least the books I have written – I just want to say thank you… thank you to anyone who has ever picked up a book, bought a book, read a book, read a story, read a poem – especially if you have read one of mine! I’m a writer, and I love to write both poetry and stories, because I am a dreamer – and just like John Lennon once said: “They say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one” – and, like John, I too believe that dreams, stories, poetry, art, music, can, and has, changed the world many times over… and one of the most enjoyable ways to go on a journey of imagination, and one of the most magical experiences you can ever partake in, you can find morning, noon, and night within a book. I believe that books are doorways to other worlds that we as a species need to read about, imagine, and dream about for our very survival on this planet. So, this World Book Day, and in the future, I would like everybody to occasionally put down their phones, their tablets, and pick up a book they have never read before, and discover a new world that is waiting to be found. Some of my favourite authors are Neil Gaiman (who I met in the 2014, and who I gave a copy of my first book ‘Poet of the Sphere’ to), Stephen king, Douglas Adams, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Lewis Carroll, C.S Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, Ernest Cline, Stan Lee, and many many others – but I know that there are still an infinite number of writers and authors out there that I still need to discover. Anyway, have fun reading! And have a very Happy World Book Day! 😊 📖 📚
-Mark
My Poem “_”
The wind blows… the trees sway…
the water of the lake ripples…
the raindrops fall upon my face…
the clouds are grey…
it is not even midday,
and though the sky feels like
it is falling down on me
I feel completely at peace and content,
as I sit on a bench
looking out at this oasis of tranquility,
completely exposed to the elements of nature,
as the ink of my pen becomes smudged
as I write in my notebook –
however I do not mind for a second
what is happening around me and above me
which I have no control over,
because all that concerns me in this moment
is where my inspiration
and the thoughts of my imagination will take me…
some moments leave quickly
like a leaf on the wind,
while others will live forever
and they will never leave me.
Happy Internatinal Literacy Day!
markthepoet.me 